Minister dodges migration modelling question eight times amid farmers’ fury

Employment Minister Amanda Rishworth has repeatedly failed to say whether Labor modelled the impacts of its new migration plan on wages or the broader economy, despite the government claiming plans proposed by One Nation and the Coalition would damage the Australian economy.

Speaking on radio on Friday morning, Rishworth was asked eight times whether the government had modelled the impact on wages of significant cuts to backpacker visas, and the broader economic impact of Labor’s plan, and eight times did not give a direct answer.

In response to repeated questions, Rishworth said she was “not really able to comment” on the modelling, later saying it was a matter for Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke. As minister for both employment and workplace relations, Rishworth has oversight over workers’ wages and is a member of cabinet.

Labor has vowed to cut nearly 40,000 backpacker visas per year and crack down on overstayers through increased enforcement as part of a plan that Burke unveiled on Thursday. The Coalition and the National Farmers’ Federation have slammed the overhaul, arguing it will raise the price of food and hurt primary producers.

The new regulations do not lower Labor’s current net overseas migration target, but instead aim to help the government achieve its plan of 245,000 migrants by June next year and then 225,000 by mid-2028. One Nation wants negative migration, followed by an annual net migration figure of 130,000, while the Coalition wants a figure slightly lower than 170,000. One Nation’s plan has been widely condemned as economically reckless.

Net overseas migration is the total number of people entering the country minus the number of people leaving.

During her ABC Radio National appearance, Rishworth said the policy amounted to “important and sensible changes” that contributed to a “sustainable” migration policy. Rishworth was unable to say whether there would be a positive impact to domestic workers’ wages or increased wage bills for farmers.

Asked a third time about the modelling of wages, Rishworth said: “We always want to see decent wages for workers, but there is a safety net in this country, and if the suggestion is suggesting somehow that backpackers are getting paid under that safety net, then I would find that unacceptable.”

Opposition employment spokeswoman Jane Hume told this masthead that Labor wasn’t serious about lowering migration, and Rishworth had proven it.

“Amanda Rishworth is the employment minister, yet she can’t answer a basic question about the impact of her government’s own policy on Australian wages,” Hume said.

“If she hasn’t seen the modelling, she should. If it doesn’t exist, Labor should say so. Because otherwise just like inflation and housing, this is just another target Labor will fail to meet.”

Earlier this week, Labor rubbished One Nation’s migration proposal, arguing it could push the Australian economy into recession.

Under Labor’s plan, working holidaymakers or backpackers will face a ballot system to access second- and third-year visa renewals. Second-year places will drop from 57,000 to 45,000, and third-year places will drop from 31,000 to 5000.

Kyalite Pistachios general manager Ben Seton-Stewart said his orchard operation was highly dependent on access to a reliable seasonal workforce. He said pruning, crop management, harvesting and processing must be completed within narrow windows and seasonal workers provided essential labour capacity on his farm near Swan Hill, on the Victoria-NSW border.

His business has recently moved away from relying primarily on backpackers in favour of labour-hire arrangements. But he said seasonal workers spent money in local communities, making an important economic contribution.

“The value of these workers therefore extends well beyond their immediate role in the orchard,” he said.

Get across all our coverage

• Burke’s warning: Is Australia becoming a guest worker economy?
• As it happened: Labor unveils immigration overhaul
• What Australians really think: The migration pathways voters want slashed
• Listen: Steph Peatling and Paul Sakkal unpack Labor’s immigration shake-up

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