Rt Hon Winston Peters
New Zealand First Leader
Member of Parliament for Northland
21 AUGUST 2015

Foreign Students Prop up Industry as NZ Takes Record Number of Migrants

A flood of foreign students to prop up the so-called Export Education industry has pushed the gain of migrants to a new record of nearly 60,000, says New Zealand First.

“The government has abandoned its ‘let the market decide’ philosophy in the case of this industry and opened the immigration gates wide to keep it alive,” says New Zealand First Leader and Member of Parliament for Northland Rt Hon Winston Peters.

“A record net gain of 59,600 migrants in the year to July, many students and work visa holders, will put a strain on all our public services, including hospitals, and demand for housing, especially in Auckland where half the migrants stay. Many will become permanent residents.

“We know that most foreign students use student visas as their swipe card to permanent residency, and that’s how agents sell NZ education to them.

“The export education demand is artificial. National conveniently gave more working rights to foreign students when the industry came begging. That’s why supermarkets, service stations and the hospitality industry now have so many foreign employees. But these low skilled, and low-paid jobs are what our students and our lowly skilled Kiwis rely on.

“The Export Education sector was supposed to bring foreign money into New Zealand, but now it is being topped up by New Zealand earnings.

“New Zealand First does not blame the foreign students, they are simply seeking opportunity for a better life.

“But, while we have unemployment of 146,000, one in five Maori and Pacific youth jobless, and thousands stuck on casual and part-time work the government should not be relying on an age-old trick to increase competition for jobs and keep wages down by allowing immigration of 117,100 people in one year.

“Student visas increased 7,300 with 26,700 arriving. Most were from India (10,600) and China (5,100). There were also 35,600 migrants arriving on work visas.”

ENDS

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