Immigration restrictions miss the point, twice

ACT Leader David Seymour says new immigration restrictions target the wrong people and show the government is getting desperate about housing.

Targeting taxpayers:

“The Minister of Immigration wants to tighten up rules for people coming to work in New Zealand. But ACT says that people coming here to work and pay tax are not the problem.

“Taxpayers are great. The problem is people who come to this country and rip off taxpayers. It’s people who send their kids to our schools while paying tax in a different jurisdiction. It’s people who come in and after just 10 years start collecting superannuation and clogging our A&E wards.

“Here’s two of ACT’s ideas for ensuring taxpayer-friendly immigration:

-If you want to send your kids to school in New Zealand you have to prove within a year that you’ve been a tax resident for at least one of the last three years.

-If you want to bring your parents in, we’ll give them a long-term visitor visa. But they will have to pay for their own superannuation and healthcare.

“Only ACT believes in protecting taxpayers, instead of punishing the immigrants who want to come here and be productive.”

Giving up on housing:

“The opposition parties agree with restricting immigrant workers, because they all have no better ideas on making houses affordable. It’s like everyone has given up on actually getting houses built.

“Fiddling with immigration settings won’t get a single new house built. And it won’t do anything to get our already-stretched infrastructure up to scratch.

“Only ACT has a plan to scrap red tape around land use and building, as well as giving councils the tools to get infrastructure built. It’s a plan that will restore housing affordability for all New Zealanders, even while our population grows.”

ENDS

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