By Oliver Winn
Immigration proved to be a touchy topic for Upper Yarra residents, a federal election survey conducted by Star News has revealed.
The topic of immigration was raised in many answers – Out of 114 respondents, 59 per cent wanted the next Federal Government to reduce immigration in the country, while 32 per cent said it should stay the same.
The remaining nine per cent wanted to increase the amount of immigrants in the country.
Some residents felt immigration wasn’t the problem, rather it’s negative stereotyping and underlying racism that’s causing issues in the Upper Yarra and beyond.
Peter, who requested only his first name to be used, said he’s a “firm believer” the majority of immigrants who arrive in Australia contribute to the country.
“The popular press, they talk about the African gangs, they talk about the machete attacks and that sort of stuff, and they say they’re African looking or whatever, and it just gives a negative view of people from overseas,” he said.
Another resident who responded to the survey, Craig Robin, believed Australians are struggling enough already – immigration is only increasing the burden.
“Australians are struggling themselves at the moment without bringing others in,” Mr Robin said.
Being an immigrant himself, Peter said the sort of issue immigrants are blamed for are the result of “major government failings” over the last few decades.
“They were blaming the immigrants for the housing crisis, well, you know, I think that’s just so wrong,” Peter said.
“They’ve changed tax laws to make it much better for investors and at the expense of people trying to buy a home and get a home, or build a home.”
But Mr Robin said Australians aren’t coping with living costs and housing prices with the added population of immigrants.
“There’s a lot of people struggling to find a house, so I see the cost of living, everything’s gone up and everything’s quite difficult at the moment,” Mr Robin said.
He said until Australia is at a point where it can accommodate more immigration, the country should “just cut it back for a while”.
The intersection between immigration, skills shortages and housing supply was an interesting trend observed in respondent’s answers.
One respondent said there was “too much rental shortage for Australian options” due to immigration.
According to current listings on realestate.com.au, townships in the Upper Yarra paint a bleak picture for renters as availability tanks:
Warburton (zero), Millgrove (zero), Yarra Junction (one), Woori Yallock (one), Wandin North (one), Launching Place (zero), and Wesburn (zero).
But rental shortages in popular holiday destinations such as Warburton may be due to short stay accommodation such as AirBnb.
In Warburton, there are 136 places available on airbnb.com.au, though the number drops dramatically in surrounding townships.
Despite that, every township in the Upper Yarra had at least five short stay accommodations available.
“We need immigrants to bring cultural experiences,” one respondent said.
Whereas another respondent highlighted the need to “prioritise skilled immigration only” to fulfil skill shortages.
Jobs and Skills Australia identified that occupations in regional locations, such as parts of the Yarra Ranges, had greater skill shortages.
The 2023 Skills Priority List (SPL) revealed trades workers as having the highest percentage of occupations with a skills shortage.
In the top five least important issues identified on the survey, immigration ranked third least important issue, above climate change and electricity prices but below water infrastructure and internet access.
Out of the 114 respondents to the survey, 61 per cent were 61-75 years old.
