Sovereignty, integrity and sustainability

The Coalition has a strong record on immigration. When last in government, the Coalition maintained the integrity of our borders and took an active role in increasing skilled migration to Australia as a means to building growth and prosperity for the entire nation.

In Government, Labor has dismantled the strong border protection regime they inherited from the Coalition and started rolling back our hard won progress on getting the balance right in our immigration programme.

Under Labor, people smugglers now decide who comes to our country.

Labor has created a highway on the sea to Christmas Island, with boats arriving illegally at will. These dangerous voyages not only put at risk the lives of every person who sets foot on these boats, but also our defence force personnel and customs officers who go to rescue them.

Christmas Island has become a visa factory for people smugglers under Labor. Every permanent visa offered by Labor to those who have arrived illegally by boat is one less offered to someone waiting overseas for their turn to come to Australia under our humanitarian programme. Christmas Island is now a destination, not a deterrent.

The Coalition’s record on border protection is clear - we stopped the boats. Only the Coalition has the resolve to do what is necessary to ensure Australia once again controls her borders.

Labor has also cut the skills component of our annual immigration intake. In contrast, the Coalition remains committed to increasing the share of skilled migration, which attracts migrants who are able to immediately make a contribution to our long term growth.

While immigration has been a key reason for our current prosperity, we cannot just assume this will be true in the future without good management or careful policy planning. That is why the Coalition believes we must have a sustainable population policy.

Please visit this page for regular updates on the work I am doing to hold the Government to account and build Coalition policy in these crucial areas.

4 December 2009

Media Release : Home borrowers paying a premium for Rudd's banks

The gap between official interest rates and mortgage rates charged by the major banks has blown out to more than one percentage point since the start of the global financial crisis...

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1 December 2009

Media Release : Rudd's Christmas rate rise trifecta

The Rudd Labor Government must explain to mortgage holders why they will be spending more on their mortgages and less on their families this Christmas following an unprecedented third...

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23 November 2009

Speech : Native Title Amendment Bill

The coalition supports the Native Title Amendment Bill (No. 2) 2009. The bill makes amendments to the Native Title Act 1993 by the insertion of a new subdivision into part 2 of the...

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16 November 2009

Multimedia : Address to the Melbourne Institute’s 2009 Economic and Social Outlook Conference - Growth is Good

Acting Shadow Minister for Infrastructure Scott Morrison's address to the Melbourne Institute’s 2009 Economic and Social Outlook Conference, Friday, 6 November 2009 An audio ...

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16 November 2009

Speech : Private Members Motion - Homelessness

As the shadow minister for housing I welcome this opportunity to participate in this debate on homelessness. In focusing on homelessness I want to stress once again the coalition’s...

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11 September 2009

Media Release : Rudd spending misses the mark for SEQ economy

Federal Shadow Minister for Housing and Local Government, Scott Morrison has joined South East Queensland Mayors in their call for the Rudd/Swan Government to get control of their ...

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8 September 2009

Media Release : Labor's naked political motives on council grants

Labor’s naked political motives for spending borrowed taxpayers’ money have been exposed with the revelation that three out of every four dollars provided to councils in NSW under ...

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31 August 2009

Blog Post : Keeping Local Councils local

My first brush with politics was in local government. I think I was eight.My father was an independent ‘alderman’ on our local municipal council. A significant part of my youth was...

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17 August 2009

Media Release : State Government addiction to regulation is costing councils and ratepayers dearly

Federal Shadow Minister for Housing and Local Government, Scott Morrison said hikes to local government fees and charges were a symptom of the barrage of cost shifting on councils ...

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6 July 2009

Media Release : TRANSCRIPT: ABC Newsradio

Introduction: Well there’s more concern this morning about the Rudd Government’s cash splash. The Financial Review is reporting that the $20 billion of direct bonus payments fell short...

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