June 13, 2017
Labour focus on reducing migrant numbers
Labour's Maori development spokesperson is confident his party’s immigration policy will relieve some of the stress on the country’s infrastructure.
Labour is promising to change immigration settings to reduce net immigration by 20,000 to 30,000 a year.
It will close off the ability to work during and after study for people who do low-level courses, direct immigrants to regions with skill shortages, and make it easier for people with exceptional skills and talents to come to New Zealand with a new Exceptional Skills Visa.
It will also require building firms who bring in skilled workers to train the same number of New Zealanders.
Kelvin Davis says that’s an improvement on the current situation, where immigration has been running more than four times what was forecast in 2013.
"The Government hasn’t planned for the consequences such as improving infrastructure, building roads, pressure on schools and hospitals, all of that stuff. Maori have always been impacted by immigration starting back in the 1800's so obviously Maori have a bit of interest in what’s going on," he says.
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