Labor is claiming a major foreign policy victory after the Federal Parliament passed its Pacific Engagement Visa legislation, opening the door for 3,000 Pacific Islanders to settle permanently in Australia each year.
The federal government had struggled to secure the numbers to pass the legislation in the Senate after the Coalition said it would oppose the government’s proposal to use a random selection process to select applicants for the visa.
But yesterday, Labor struck a deal with the Greens to secure their support in return for the government reviewing a controversial mechanism that allows it to reject temporary visa applications from people with disabilities at significant cost to the Australian taxpayer.
This morning, the visa legislation sailed back through the House of Representatives with minor amendments, meaning it will become law.
Pacific Affairs Minister Pat Conroy hailed the passage as a crucial part of the Albanian government’s efforts to build a Pacific diaspora in Australia.
“This was a policy we took to the last election and it is revolutionary in nature,” he told the ABC.
Shadow Pacific Minister Michael McCormack said that while the Coalition supported the government’s efforts to build closer ties with the Pacific, it remained opposed to the vote.
“We maintain that Australian citizenship is too valuable to be decided by a lottery,” he said.
“Now that the bill has been passed, the onus is on the government to demonstrate that the lottery mechanism and the Pacific Engagement Visa serve the interests of both Australia and the participating nations, and that it has the support of the Pacific nations.”
Some legal advocates have also raised concerns about the lottery mechanism.
Senior lawyer at the Immigration Advice and Rights Centre (IARC), Joshua Strutt, said that while he welcomed more opportunities for Pacific migration to Australia, the vote was a “gamble”.
“Gambling with the migration system isn’t fair for anyone. The IARC has been calling for clearer and more secure pathways to permanent residence in Australia for Pacific Islanders,” he said.
But the government says the vote will ensure fair access to Australia and help prevent a brain drain from the Pacific.
Professor Stephen Howes of the Australian National University said the voting system had worked well for a similar visa system in New Zealand.
“The New Zealand visa is popular and widely accepted, so it just makes eminent sense for Australia to follow the New Zealand path,” he told the ABC.
Professor Howes said the timing of the legislation would also work well for Labor ahead of a critical Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) leaders’ meeting in the Cook Islands in early November.
“We’re going to the Pacific Islands Forum leaders’ meeting … and we know the whole issue of visa-free access is going to be raised,” he said.
“It’s not something that Australia is prepared to concede, but Australia can point to this very significant initiative as a practical way in which it’s making travel to Australia much easier.”
Hopes for regional unity
While some Pacific nations have privately expressed concerns that the Pacific Engagement Visa could exacerbate skills shortages in the region, some senior Pacific politicians have enthusiastically backed the proposal.
Fiji’s Deputy Prime Minister Biman Prasad told the ABC that the visa would encourage business investment between Australia and the Pacific and “allow ideas and innovation to move from one country to another”.
“In a broader sense, this is part of a broader strategy to integrate the region in the long term,” he said.
He also dismissed fears that the visa would lead to a brain drain in the Pacific.
“There’s this idea that suddenly everybody’s going to pack their bags, but that’s not going to happen,” he told the ABC.
“In fact, it may create an environment where people feel there are opportunities and there will be more stability.”
The government still wants to push separate legislation through parliament that would give Pacific Engagement Visa holders access to additional welfare benefits.
It has promised to open the programme in the first half of next year, with the first visa holders settling in Australia in 2024.
Pat Conroy said the government was still working out exactly how the 3,000 places would be allocated to different Pacific countries.
“We’re working on what we announce, but I think there’s a strong case for announcing the country allocations,” he said.
The minister said the places would be allocated “broadly but not entirely” in line with the population of each country, and that Australia would make sure Pacific nations were “comfortable” with their allocations.
He also said some of the 13 Pacific countries eligible for the scheme might not take part until the second year.
“There are some countries that are very enthusiastic and want to be part of the early roll-out and there are others that have said they will take a step back and be part of the second year,” he said.
Professor Howes said this was a potentially transformative moment in Australia’s relationship with the Pacific.
“This is the first time we’ve had a Pacific window into not our temporary migration program but our permanent migration program,” he told the ABC.
“It certainly elevates the Pacific to a very high status.”
