Labor’s record-breaking Big Australia in 2023

The record scale of Labor’s Big Australia by stealth that is fuelling inflation, driving up rents, and straining government services has been revealed by new data released today.

Record overseas migration of 518,000 people in the 2022-23 financial year has already been confirmed by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. To achieve this, the Albanese Labor Government has broken more records than Ian Thorpe when it comes to issuing visas.

According to answers to Senate Estimates Questions on Notice, Labor was responsible for a record-breaking Big Australia in 2023:

• Record 577,295 student visas granted — breaking the old record by 171,553.
• Record 125,090 Temporary Graduate visas granted — more than double the old record of 54,781.
• Record 140,934 Covid work visas granted — more than four times the old record of 31,148 (and when there was no pandemic).
• Record 464,539 Temporary resident visas granted – more than double the old record of 186,148.

Labor’s record-breaking year of immigration has Australians struggling with the cost of living asking the question: where will all these people live?

Labor says they don’t want a Big Australia but under the Albanese Government 900,000 people will arrive over two years and 1.625 million will arrive over five. Labor won’t even commit to reducing their record migration levels as Australians endure cost of living pressures, housing shortages and rent hikes.

HOME AFFAIRS MINISTER CLARE O'NEIL: It's not a target, it's an estimate, and David, you'll understand that there are things about that number that are not within the control of government… So we don't commit to those numbers as a target, as you've said, they are estimates of the policy decisions that we're making.

Australians are worried about the impact of record immigration on inflation, cost of living, housing, government services, and the environment but the Government won’t promise to deal with it.