The Press MONDAY, MAY 13, 1974. New rules for migrants

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33532, 13 May 1974, Page 12

The Press MONDAY, MAY 13, 1974. New rules for migrants

The real test of the Government’s new rules for the entry of immigrants will be their operation, but on the face of it the proposals should provide a fair and flexible means of controlling immigration. A reduction in the net inflow of migrants, more attention to the skills they bring with them, more recognition of the inflationary effects of significant numbers of immigrants who are consumers rather than producers, and attention to the capacity of community services to absorb more people, especially in Auckland: these are elements in the migration policy which have been overdue for attention. Coming to terms with them just when New Zealand is attracting more attention from would-be migrants in less attractive parts of the world might seem selfish; the Government has acknowledged, correctly, that its first duty is to preserve the standards of those who are New Zealanders now; and it has a further obligation not to allow immigration which might be harmful to the individuals' concerned or to the societies they leave. As the Monetary and Economic Council pointed out in its recent report, New Zealand’s real need is for a small number of immigrants with skills which are scarce here. Because of the outflow of population, these could easily be attracted without any net gain in population.

The special treatment to be accorded to some Pacific Islanders might be a less happy arrangement. Its hint of an inverse racism by which Polynesians will receive more favoured treatment than others can, perhaps, be balanced by the needs of the islands and the special link their peoples enjoy with a segment of New Zealand’s population. But it is by no means clear that, even by lowering the level of qualifications required from potential Polynesian immigrants, the best interests of the islands will be served. In most cases Islanders who are allowed to settle permanently in New Zealand will still be those with skills needed for the development of their own communities. The people who would most easily fit into New Zealand society are those their tiny countries need at home. It will be ironical, indeed, if the increasing technical and educational aid which New Zealand is giving to the islands returns here in the form of skilled immigrants, leaving the original communities no better off.

On the other hand it would be a disservice to Nevi’ Zealand, and to the immigrants themselves, to encourage permanent residence here by unskilled Polynesians unless expensive schemes for educating and training them are established. These people might well be spared by their own countries, but no one will be better off if they are condemned to lives as unskilled workers in housing conditions which are close to slums. The Government’s proposal to enlarge work-permit schemes for temnorary unskilled workers is much to be preferred, although that, too. will be distasteful if it seems that New Zealand industries are regarding the islands as a pool of temporary and unskilled workers. In the long run the best solution, surely, is to encourage industry in the islands by looking for ways to guarantee export markets for island manufactures in New Zealand and Australia. The Government has already run up against strong trade union hostility in New Zealand when it has appeared that cheaper island labour might be used in work where, even theoretically, they would compete with New Zealand unionists. But if the independent island States are ever to be economically viable they need to be able to export their products, not their skilled labour, to more developed States. There is some recognition of this in the new immigration policy: devising wavs which will make it effective might require some sacrifice on the part of many New Zealanders.