India is now Australia’s second largest international student source after experiencing explosive growth in recent years.
Various migration pacts signed between Australia and India have facilitated the growth of Indian students, offering greater opportunities to study, work, and live in Australia. These include:
- The Australia-India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA), signed by the former Coalition government.
- Australia-India Migration and Mobility Partnership Agreement, signed by the current Labor government.
- The Mechanism for Mutual Recognition of Qualifications, signed by the current Labor government.
Victoria is the go-to destination for Indian students, with 48,633 enrolled in the state as of May 2024, according to the Department of Education:
This weekend, Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan will visit India to promote stronger ties in education.
In a speech this week ahead of her trip, Allan grovelled for Indian students, as well as attacked the federal government’s caps on international student numbers:
“We’re really proud really proud that Victoria is the top destination for Indian students”, Allan said.
“We’re supporting the next generation of leaders of the Indian Community to be shaping the nurses, doctors, engineers, artists, business leaders, and entrepreneurs”.
“I don’t understand why there would be moves to jeopardise that. I don’t understand why there are measures to cap or block something that is working so well for us”.
“My message to you today, and it’ll be a message I’ll be taking with me to India next week, is that international students from India and from around the world are welcome here, absolutely welcome here in Victoria”.
“I value our international student community so much. I know international students and their families have made such big and enormous sacrifices to come here and to learn in Victoria.
“We want to see that hard work rewarded”.
“International students are among some of the hardest workers I’ve. That’s why I don’t think capping international students helps us. I think it hurts us”.
“I also want to be clear that we won’t let this issue rest. We’ll keep pushing this issue forward but also keep on welcoming international students here into Victoria to continue to learn, study and grow”.
As usual, the Victorian Premier has ignored the many downsides arising from the explosion in student numbers, including the collapse in pedagogical standards, the explosion in ‘ghost colleges’, endemic wage theft, the rental crisis, etc.
Even International Education Association of Australia CEO Phil Honeywood last year labelled Australia’s international education system a “Ponzi scheme” for enticing non-genuine students through migration pathways.
Indian students are ground zero of this Ponzi scheme (for example, see here, here, here, and here).
The above sermon by Jacinta Allan is proof that Victoria is a Ponzi economy built on immigration volume instead of quality.
Allan will do anything to force-feed Melbourne to 9 million people by 2056; damn the consequences on living standards.
