Farrer GP labels immigration plans a 'circus' amid fears of doctor deserts

In short:

A GP from the One Nation-held electorate of Farrer has criticised the party's plans to clamp down on immigration.

Alam Yoosuff has served the community for 19 years after migrating from Sri Lanka and says the debate about cutting immigration is a political "circus".

What's next?

Member for Farrer David Farley says the party's agriculture and agribusiness immigration policy remains uncapped and is "demand-based".

In Australia's first federal electorate to switch to One Nation, overseas-trained medical professionals who have made rural towns their home are warning the political "circus" to drive down migration will create doctor deserts, putting patients at risk.

Associate Professor Alam Yoosuff has worked as a GP in the Riverina town of Finley for 19 years after migrating from Sri Lanka in 2006.

He is among residents concerned that migration policies are being based on numbers, rather than common sense.

"We need to do what is fit for purpose for our country, and our economy, and our industries, and then work out the [migration] numbers based on that," he said.

"I think what we are seeing is now just a circus of political score-gaining, rather than informed, engaged, insightful debate."

This week, the federal government announced its plan to bring net overseas migration down from 306,000 to 225,000 by 2028.

Home Affairs minister Tony Burke revealed the changes included cracking down on "visa overstayers", stopping international students from bringing family to Australia, and limiting the stay of backpackers.

Labor's announcement came as One Nation revealed its proposal to slash immigration by 750,000 places over three years. The Coalition is finalising plans for a policy expected to target between 150,000 to 170,000 people.

Dr Yoosuff said he is just one of many immigrants propping up the local health sector in the One Nation-held Farrer electorate.

He works alongside three international doctors he sponsored to join the Finley Medical Centre, and also relies heavily on overseas recruitment for the practice's aged care business.

He estimates nearly two-thirds of his care workers are from the Pacific region, and around half his nurses are from India.

He said it is vital for successful recruitment that migrants have the option to bring family.

Dr Yoosuff has also flagged that Australia risks losing specialist practitioners to other nations that have more flexible family migration allowances.

Meanwhile, on the eastern side of the electorate, Albury Wodonga Health (AWH) relies on recruiting skilled health professionals from overseas as an important part of its strategy to provide key clinical support to the local community.

A spokesperson for AWH said recruiting skilled health professionals from interstate and overseas were important strategies to provide that clinical support — alongside growing the local workforce and retaining staff.

"The clinicians who join us from overseas don't simply fill a roster, they buy homes, enrol their children in local schools, join local clubs, and become part of the fabric of the Albury Wodonga community, many for the length of their entire careers,"the spokesperson said.

Looking locally

Non-profit community organisation Regional Development Australia Murray said about 80 per cent of doctors and health workers in Corowa were born overseas, with the region relying on migration to fill healthcare, agriculture and manufacturing jobs.

Its skilled migration program has helped settle 240 workers and their families in the region in the past 18 months, bringing the total to more than 500 people.

About 70 per cent of those workers filled healthcare roles.

CEO Sarimah Hellyer said businesses turned to the program out of "desperation," after struggling to fill positions locally.

"It's high risk, it's high cost, it takes a lot of time,"she said.

Ms Hellyer said the benefits extended beyond filling jobs, with migrant families contributing to schools, sporting clubs and the wider community.

She said regional communities needed a greater say in migration policy.

"What we experience here is not what's being experienced in every other part of Australia," she said.

No broken promises

When One Nation MP David Farley was elected Farrer in May, he campaigned on returning productivity and capacity to the electorate.

He said this stance is not compromised by One Nation's immigration policy, and defended the party's migration target as a "very very manageable number".

"The reality of the situation at the moment [is] we're growing a country with a housing deficit, our health systems are behind, and our education systems are behind," he told ABC Goulburn Murray Breakfast on Friday.

He said existing programs around agriculture, agribusiness and working holiday makers remained unchanged.

"From my preselection interview with One Nation and immediately post the by-election win, One Nation and I have been educating, negotiating and formulating immigration policy optimal for agriculture and agribusiness," he said.

He said the party's agriculture and agribusiness immigration policy is "demand-based and not capped" and that families of skilled migrants need to be able to "contribute" if they want to settle in Australia.

The One Nation MP also suggested if workers migrated without their families, they could fly back to their home country to visit.

Compassion needed

Richard Ogetii migrated from Kenya as a dependant with his wife and children on a skilled migrant visa in 2015.

Now the Community Executive Officer of the Albury Wodonga Ethnic Communities Council, Mr Ogetii said skilled migrants should be able to bring their families and make use of their skills.

"Who wants to go to a place if you can't go with your family?" he said.

"Are we saying, 'We just want your labour, we don't want you to live [here]?'"

He said migration policy also needed to better consider regional communities, warning proposed cuts to international student numbers could have a significant impact on Albury-Wodonga's university campuses.

"We risk doing things because they look easy, but the long-term effect might be devastating," he said.

University sector impact

Charles Sturt University's Pro Vice-Chancellor of International, Mike Ferguson, said there was no disputing the federal government's need to carefully manage migration.

He said the university supported stronger action against non-genuine student transfers, including cancelling visas where students breached their conditions and closing policy loopholes that enabled "course hopping".

But Mr Ferguson said the proposed cuts were excessive and would have a "devastating impact" on universities and the wider community.

He said international student fees helped support regional campuses and courses.

"This includes several courses we deliver at a financial loss, but whose graduates are too important to regional communities for us to walk away from: Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary Sciences," Mr Feguson said.

"The reality that fewer international students for Charles Sturt means fewer doctors, nurses and teachers in regional towns and cities needs to be acknowledged and part of this discussion."