​​SUBJECTS: Coalition Immigration Policy, Small Business Support, Multiculturalism

THE WIRE HOST: This week Opposition Leader Angus Taylor launched a migration plan to reduce immigration numbers in Australia, which was received with mixed reactions. The plan is a values-based migration scheme, and includes eliminating legal aid for cancelled visas, more scrutiny on social media and prioritising the Australian Values Statement as a binding visa condition. Labor and human rights organisations see this plan as a cynical strategy to compete with One Nation to obtain votes.

Federal Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Dr Anne Aly, was in Brisbane today, and The Wire’s Eduardo Jordan asked Dr Aly her thoughts about the LNP’s new plan.

ANNE ALY: Well, I thought it wasn’t much of a policy as it was an ideological and might I say negative approach to immigration. Australia has always prided itself on an in-principle non-discriminatory immigration system and one that has worked really well comparatively. I notice that he talked about, you know, extra vetting of certain people from certain places, particularly he spoke about, you know, Gazan refugees and extra vetting for them. And they’ve already been vetted. They’ve been vetted quite thoroughly actually before they get here.

I also – you know, I thought that his speech was more about really denigrating immigration, I have to say. And I would say to Angus Taylor, you know, I was out there yesterday and I spoke to a group of African women refugees who spoke so strongly and so passionately about their aspirations and their desires and how grateful they are to be in Australia, their aspirations to set up their own businesses in Australia, to learn new skills, to contribute to this country and, in their own words, to give back to Australia.

I would say to Angus Taylor, get out there and meet these people before you lump migrants into good and bad based on which country they come from, which language they speak, the colour of their skin or their ethnic origins. Get out there and talk to them. I just find this generalisation and this attempt to lump good and bad migrants and to distinguish good and bad migrants really feeds into a narrative that does a lot of damage to our social harmony but also that neglects and refuses to recognise the incredible contributions that immigration and migrants have made over the years.

EDUARDO JORDAN (HOST): You’re the Minister for Small Business as well. As you mentioned, you’ve visited businesses, and some of them are founded by multicultural Australians. What have they mentioned to you about the petrol prices affecting their businesses, all the issues that are happening outside?

ALY: Yeah, so around 34 per cent across the nation of new businesses are started by immigrants, which really demonstrates that point that I was making earlier that, you know, people come to Australia, they want to be able to contribute to our country and to their communities. And the good news is that in this last quarter we had a record number of new businesses starting, which indicates that there is more confidence in small businesses.

Obviously reducing the petrol excise and removing the heavy road user charge has had a positive impact on small businesses. That’s what they’re telling me. They’re telling me that that’s really helped them. We’ve also recently introduced a new suite of packages also to assist small businesses around tax system flexibility, around allowing them to access credit more quickly and more efficiently, and they’re also getting support from the financial sector and broader support as well.

So when I meet with migrant small businesses there’s two things – the first thing is that they are incredibly invested in their communities. They undertake to train people, they are very good at training people and very good at retaining new workers. And they are very, very keen on contributing to our nation.

HOST: And speaking about all those things, the federal government has cut the federal excise for three months to support all Australians with the petrol prices. What other initiatives are on the table to support Australians through this time?

ALY: So there are two things. So we’ve got a national plan that was agreed upon by the Prime Minister and all the state Premiers. That’s a four-phase plan, and we’re in phase 2 of that plan. And the plan is designed to escalate should the situation in the Middle East get worse. The first thing, of course, is that we continue to urge for a sustainable ceasefire and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. But, of course, as the Treasurer said this morning, you know, even when that happens the shock of this will be felt for some time after.

So some of the things that we’re doing, of course, the petrol excise, as you mentioned. I also mentioned the heavy road user charge. That’s on the kind of the price supply. So ensuring that, you know, Australians can access petrol at a cost, at a lower cost. The other side, of course, is the supply side and ensuring that there is petrol and diesel available for Australians, and there are a number of things that we’ve done there. We’ve released some of our supplies. You’ll note that the Prime Minister is currently in Brunei but he’s done a visit to Singapore and Malaysia working with our international and regional partners to ensure that we continue to get our supply of fuel from those countries. The Treasurer is on his way to the US to talk to other like-minded countries and other countries about shoring up our supply.

THE WIRE HOST: The Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Dr Anne Aly, speaking to The Wire’s Eduardo Jordan. In a press conference today the Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke responded to Angus Taylor’s immigration policy announcement. According to the Home Affairs Minister not one line in the speech would deliver an extra job, create an extra house or keep anyone safer. The government has been bringing the numbers down and bringing the standards up. Mr Taylor’s diatribe has nothing to do with the national interest and is entirely about sending a vibe to One Nation. When asked about the English language requirement, the Home Affairs minister said millions of Australians will be asking them why the Liberals have a problem with their parents who don’t speak great English but are great Australians.

Multicultural Australians from all backgrounds have contributed positively to the country and the economy, according to the Home Affairs website around one in three businesses were started by a migrant, whether someone studied here, has a refugee background or moved to Australia for different reasons. As a migrant herself, Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Dr Anne Aly, says language and culture keep multicultural communities alive. The Wire’s Eduardo Jordan asked Minister Aly what’s the impact of multicultural communities creating small businesses.

ALY: I have to say its one of the things about having three portfolios – small business, multicultural affairs and international development – because there is a real thread that runs between all three. As I mentioned, around 34 per cent of small businesses are started by migrants. I have to say, in Western Australia, which is my home state, it’s a bit higher. It’s about 40 per cent, just putting that out there. Everyone else needs to lift their game. But, you know, I think for generations migrants have come to Australia with a strong work ethic and a real determination to make a life for themselves and for their children, and they are entrepreneurial when it comes to starting up new businesses. They are entrepreneurial and they are aspirational.

And I want to take a moment just to think of all of those things out there that we take for granted that we use every day that actually have been started and run by migrants, right. Whether it’s your local grocery store that stocks the kinds of ingredients that you need to be able to make your cultural traditional dishes, you know, your Indian grocer; your British grocer, your Arabic supplier that supplies all your herbs and spices to be able to make your traditional dishes. You know, think about hairdressers, hairdressers and barbers. You know, they were started up by migrants that, you know, know how to treat – sometimes hair can take different forms and, you know, as somebody from North Africa, I know exactly how that feels. You know, you think about all the different kinds of businesses out there that you go to that are run by migrants and they’re really quite entrepreneurial, particularly in servicing their communities for things that are culturally - create that cultural connection for them and that sense of belonging for them. Very, very critical in that role. But also in other roles – in the care sector, in, you know, NDIS, in aged care, in, you know, nursing all of those other ones as well and therapy and all of those things. So they play a really critical role not just in servicing multicultural communities but in also servicing the broader community as well. And every single business, small business, that I’ve visited, whether it’s a restaurant or whether it’s a grocery or whether it’s a hairdresser or a barber, all of them have a really keen sense of community and their role in community and they play a very active role in their communities.

HOST: Now, as you know [indistinct] is a multicultural community radio station. And as a multicultural Australian yourself, how important is it to keep multicultural communities alive in Australia?

ALY: It’s hugely important. Like, if I can just reflect for a moment, Eduardo, I was a young girl when the Labor government introduced the policy of multiculturalism. That was – you know, at the risk of giving away my age, that was in the 70s. And I remember the impact that that had on my parents when SBS first started, right, because they were like, “Wow, we can watch Arabic shows on television.” And having information and news and entertainment available in language made a huge impact on my family. And I know it made a huge impact on families and continues to make a huge impact on families and individuals right across Australia because language and culture are intrinsically tied together and they’re living things, they are living concepts. You know, there are so many Australians who are bilingual. Myself, I watch Arabic Egyptian television shows consistently on my streaming services, and the difference that that has made to me in keeping up my language, first of all, in keeping up my second language – Arabic is my second language; it was my first, it’s my second language – keeping up my language but also keeping me feel connected to my cultural heritage and my traditional heritage. And I think for young people in particular that is such an important part of their sense of belonging and their sense of identity as Australians.

HOST: Well, Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Dr Anne Aly, that would be [indistinct]. Is there anything else you would like to add?

ALY: Just to say a huge thank you to you, Eduardo, and to the wonderful work that you do here and the wonderful work that all community radio stations do. You’re a really important part of the community, putting out the information and the entertainment and that news in language. It’s hugely important and I recognise that. And thank you.

HOST: That was the Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Dr Anne Aly, speaking with The Wire’s Eduardo Jordan.​