Writer
Abul Rizvi
Abul Rizvi PhD was a senior official in the Department of Immigration from the early 1990s to 2007 when he left as Deputy Secretary. He was awarded the Public Service Medal and the Centenary Medal for services to development and implementation of immigration policy, including the reshaping of Australia's intake to focus on skilled migration, slow Australia's rate of population ageing and boost Australia's international education and tourism industries.
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ABUL RIZVI. We need to keep migrants in Australia during coronavirus recession
If the government does not act to stop the coronavirus recession from forcing migrants out, then Australia will be far more economically vulnerable. Because Australia is a migrant settler nation, recessions here have special characteristics. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI.- Job-keeper allowance a gun to the heads of over 1 million temporary entrants
The job keeper allowance is a massive tourniquet for the Australian economy and society. But for over 1 million temporary entrants, the allowance is a gun to their head. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: The Ruby Princess – how could this have happened?
The Ruby Princess, along with a number of other cruise ships that arrived in Australia around the same time, will go down in Australian history as a super spreader of disease and death. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI. Possible population projections in the forthcoming 2020 Intergenerational Report
Treasurer Frydenberg will shortly publish the 2020 Intergenerational Report (IGR) –Australia’s fifth such document. It’s as close as we get to a long-term plan (usually 40 years) for the Australian population and economy. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI. Why the Kiwis are not coming to OZ any more
For much of the last 30 years, New Zealand has been one of Australia’s top source countries for migrants. But since 2013-14 Australia seems to have lost its attraction to Kiwis. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI. Morrison impotent on visa arrangements for Indonesians
The Australian of 10 February 2019 reports the Morrison government is “considering” Mr Joko’s proposal for Australia to relax visa restrictions for Indonesian visitors in line with the “visa on arrival” arrangements for Australians visiting Indonesia. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI. Dutton’s Trifecta of Border Protection Failures
For years now Peter Dutton has boasted of his border protection achievements. But a brief examination of the details of his boast shows that while he has excelled in gratuitous cruelty, dog-whistling and wasting taxpayer’s money, his actual border protection record is weak. He has given us the trifecta of weak borders, inhumane treatment of Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: Does Australia have a temporary migration problem?
On 5 December 2019, the Senate established a Select Committee on Temporary Migration to “inquire into the impact temporary migration has on the Australian economy, wages and jobs, social cohesion and workplace rights and conditions”. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI. The Australian again falls for Government spin on the record number of asylum seekers arriving by air.
In a front page exclusive on 28 January, Geoff Chambers and Joe Kelly of The Australian uncritically regurgitate the Government’s talking points on asylum seekers arriving by plane. Either they are just innocents with no idea how to do the job of a journalist or they see their role as purely to defend the Government. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: Why 5% unemployment today is not the same as 5% unemployment 10-20 years ago
The unemployment rate, and even the underemployment rate, have become an inadequate measure of the true health of our labour market. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI. No end in sight to growth in Dutton’s backlogs-the asylum seekers who came by air.
End December 2019 data shows the backlog of asylum applications at the primary stage, at the AAT and those who have been finally refused and have become overstayers continues to grow. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: Forecasts of Net Overseas Migration – Why they matter
It does not matter much if Treasury forecasts of net overseas migration (NOM) from one year to the next are out by 30,000 or 40,000 as is likely for the 2019 Budget forecast for 2020. This happens regularly. But it is much more serious if forecasts are out by this much for every year over Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: Is Dutton Undermining Birmingham’s Tourism Campaign?
Tourism Minister Simon Birmingham has announced an additional $25 million to market Australia to international tourists in response to the impact of the bushfire crisis. He says this is necessary to ‘save Aussie jobs’. But his counterpart Peter Dutton has been dramatically reducing approval rates for visitor visa applications for Asian tourists. Are they not Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: Dutton and Pezzullo’s Asylum Seeker Bungle – November Update
David Crowe in the Sydney Morning Herald reports that Dutton’s Department received an average of 77 asylum applications per day in November 2019. That brings the total number of asylum applications in the last five and a half years to well over 100,000. But what is happening to those 100,000 people? Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: Re-emergence of Dodgy VET Colleges
Since January 2018, the Australian Skills Quality Agency (ASQA) has cancelled the registration of around 450 private VET colleges. This is after years of such cancellations being relatively rare. A spokesperson for ASQA has said this reflects an improved “ability to better target regulatory activities on providers demonstrating the highest risks to VET in Australia”. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: Dysfunction in Home Affairs officially confirmed
The dysfunction in the Home Affairs Department that has been long reported on (see here, here, and here) has now been officially confirmed in a survey conducted by the Australian Public Service Commission. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI. Highlights of 2018-19 Migration Program Outcome
Minister Coleman has at last allowed the 2018-19 Migration Program report to be published in early December. These are usually finalised each July. Two highlights: (1) the Partner visa application pipeline has reached almost 90,000 and is certain to grow much further in 2019-20; and (2) the backlog of employer sponsored visa applications is falling Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI. A Cruel Government Setting Regional Migrants Up for Exploitation and Failure
On 16 November 2019, the Government’s much touted new regional migration visas took effect. One of these is a five year provisional visa that requires the migrant to be nominated by a state/territory government. To secure permanent residence, the provisional migrant must live and work in the relevant region and earn at least $53,900 per Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: Asylum Applications from China and Malaysia
Government has argued the surge in asylum applications from Chinese and Malaysian citizens is just part of normal growth in the caseload (see here). Nothing could be further from the truth. The surge is entirely the result of poor policy such as the staffing cap, Home Affairs rushing implementation of e:visas for Chinese nationals to Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: Frydenberg’s Population Ageing Backflip
After studiously ignoring population ageing in his ten year budget plan issued before the 2019 Election, Josh Frydenberg now says population ageing will be an economic and fiscal timebomb. So which of the two Frydenberg narratives are we to believe? The pre-election one or the post-election one? Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: Prime Minister fudges regional migration figures
In a speech at the Migration and Settlement awards (23 October 2019), Prime Minister Scott Morrison crowed about the number of regional migration visas issued in the first quarter of 2019-20. Now Immigration Minister Coleman has announced the target will be increased from 23,000 to 25,000 and that Perth and the Gold Coast will be Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI. Pezzullo in Denial
At Senate Estimates this week, Home Affairs Secretary Mike Pezzullo denied the record number of (largely non-genuine) asylum applications under his watch is a crisis. This is like the black knight in Monty Python’s Holy Grail insisting losing his arms and legs was just a flesh wound. But more seriously, Government allowing Pezzullo to get Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI. Current surge in asylum seekers is not normal for Australia
Writing in The Conversation, Regina Jefferies and Daniel Ghezelbash argue the current surge in onshore asylum applications is not ‘unprecedented’ because tourists or students often lodge claims for asylum due to circumstances beyond their control. They give the example of the Chinese students after the Tiananmen Square massacre. But Jefferies and Ghezelbash fail to note Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: Bob Birrell’s War on Partner Visas
The partner visa categories are for people who have formed a genuine relationship (formally married or de facto or prospective marriage) with an Australian citizen or permanent resident. In July 2019 Bob Birrell continued his long-standing war on partner visas, particularly for people from poorer Asian countries, by calling for further restrictions on partner migration. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: Morrison’s Mixed Messages on Migration
A string of immigration related articles in The Australian on 5 September 2019 and on 7 September 2019 again dutifully conveyed the Government’s mixed messages on immigration policy without asking a single question about the inherent inconsistencies and loss of control over Australia’s visa system. The Government continues to promote three very separate messages on Continue reading »
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Dysfunction in Home Affairs officially confirmed
The dysfunction in the Home Affairs Department that has been long reported on (see here, here, and here) has now been officially confirmed in a survey conducted by the Australian Public Service Commission. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: Government Responds to Dutton’s Visa Chaos on Asylum Seekers
The Government has at last responded to the chaos in our visa system. In response to a question from Senator Keneally, Senator Linda Reynolds has suggested the bridging visa backlog is apparently due to an unexpected surge in visa applications that caught Home Affairs off-guard. Also, in 2018-19 there has been a 12 percent fall Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: Government reveals details of its net overseas migration (NOM) forecast
The Government has at last revealed some details of its 2019 Budget forecast for a record breaking level of sustained NOM. The key is a significant increase in the net contribution from temporary visa holders. This would mean the current stock of around 2 million temporary entrants in our population must rise even more rapidly. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: South Australia – Canary in the Ageing Coalmine
In terms of the impact of population ageing, South Australia provides a glimpse into Australia’s future. Over the next decade, ageing will impact Australia more significantly than at any time in our post World War II history. By 2030, all the 5.5 million baby boomers will be past age 65 and predominantly in retirement. Continue reading »
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ABUL RIZVI: Chaos in our Visa System Continues
New Shadow Minister for Home Affairs, Kristina Keneally and Shadow Immigration Minister have signalled they intend to hold the Government to account for the chaos in our visa system. This article updates some of the data on that chaos which confirms Home Affairs continues to struggle. The Department’s funding over the next few years, together Continue reading »