South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas has defended Australia’s skilled migration programme, arguing in a speech at the Sydney Institute that migrants with valuable qualifications can deliver a greater economic benefit than Australian-born residents.
Speaking in Sydney on Wednesday night, the Labor premier warned against reducing migration levels in response to pressure from One Nation and said decisions about immigration should be guided by economic needs rather than political competition.
Mr Malinauskas said skilled migrants were typically of working age, able to enter well-paid employment and contribute to government revenues through taxation. He cited a 2021 Treasury calculation that placed the lifetime net fiscal contribution of an average skilled migrant at A$198,000, compared with a net cost of A$85,000 for the average Australian-born resident.
He argued that cutting skilled migration would amount to economic self-harm, particularly as Australia faces labour shortages and seeks to expand industries linked to the AUKUS defence pact.
The speech came as Australia’s major parties faced growing pressure to reduce net overseas migration amid public concern over housing costs, infrastructure and access to services. One Nation has called for the figure to fall to 130,000, while the Coalition has proposed linking migration levels to the number of homes built.
The federal government plans to reduce net overseas migration from 301,000 last year to 245,000 in the current financial year, with a further reduction to 225,000 proposed for 2027-28.
Mr Malinauskas maintained that the response to anti-immigration politics should not be to compete with One Nation by adopting increasingly restrictive policies, but to explain the economic contribution made by skilled workers from overseas.
