This is where asylum seekers can add something positive to the mix.
Anecdotal and empirical evidence suggests that, in the main, refugees
are intelligent and hard working people who, in fleeing persecution and
economic hardship, want to settle in and be part of the community that
accepts them.
It's a notion supported by some of Australia's great post-war
business and cultural success stories.
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People such as Australian of the Year and leading pediatrician, John
Yu, or mining magnate Sir Arvi Parbo are two who spring to mind.
In fact, a recently released British Government report contains some
fascinating findings on the positive economic contribution of migrants,
including refugees.
This report not only finds that migrants are not a burden on British
taxpayers, but on the contrary make a net fiscal contribution.
In short, migrants contribute about $3 for every $2 that they receive
in government welfare. And the study destroys the myth that migrants,
and in particular refugees who are generally of working age, take our
jobs, as some populists in Australia would have us believe.
The British report finds that migrants also produce indirect
benefits, such as introducing new industries or increasing the
productivity of existing labour and capital.
Australia has a tremendous opportunity to take advantage of the flow
of refugees to our country. We can either watch many parts of our nation
slowly die through lack of enterprise and an ageing population, or we
can follow the example of the community in Young and welcome refugees
into our lives. We should see the cruelty of long periods of mandatory
detention as a waste of a substantial economic resource, particularly
for regional Australia.
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