Australians don’t want return to high immigration

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The ABC runs a big (54,000 responses) annual survey called Australia Talks.

This year’s survey has been released and reveals that a big majority (61%) of Australians believe that population growth is a problem for Australia, with nearly one quarter (24%) believing population growth is a major problem:

A smaller majority of Australians (54%) also believe that immigration is a problem for Australia, again with nearly a quarter (24%) believing it is a major problem:

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However, more Australians than not still believe that Australia has room to grow, presumably at a slower pace than the prior 15 years:

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Australians are also not against migrants and cultural diversity per se, but rather excessive levels of immigration:

This broadly matches other recent surveys, for example October’s survey from the Australian Population Research Institute:

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Survey data collected by The Australian Population Research Institute (TAPRI), and by other pollsters, show that around half the Australian electorate want a reduction in immigration.


A majority of all voters think Australia does not need more people and believe that high immigration is responsible for the deterioration of the quality of life in Australia’s big cities, as well as stressing its natural environment.

Australia’s politicians should tread carefully before ramping up immigration post COVID. This is not supported by Australian voters.

About the author
Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness. Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.