Canterbury mayors call for Government to rethink immigration changes

Friday, 23 June 2017

Canterbury mayors say there are not enough Kiwis to fill jobs in the region's farms and businesses.

They have called for the Government to reconsider its proposed immigration policy, asking for less focus on 'Auckland issues' and more on regional needs.

The proposed changes, announced by Immigration Minister Michael Woodhouse in April, aim to manage the quality and number of migrants coming to New Zealand. Measures include making migrant workers leave for at least 12 months after three years working.

The Canterbury Mayoral Forum, made up of the 10 district mayors and the chair of Environment Canterbury, sent a collective letter outlining their concerns to Woodhouse and Prime Minister Bill English. 

They projected Canterbury needed about 106,000 migrants over the next 15 years, or about 6600 people yearly, which was similar to post-earthquake levels and well above historic levels of 3500 a year. It said the ageing population and employment growth drove demand for workers in the region. 

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Making some migrant workers leave after three years was 'unnecessarily disruptive to business', the letter said. 

'It is likely to mean that farmers will simply replace a migrant with three years' experience and skills, with a new migrant with neither.'

'Measures designed to manage Auckland issues do not well serve our region, businesses or communities.' 

The Government's proposal includes a one-off 'pathway to residence' for 4000 temporary migrant workers in the South Island. Canterbury's mayors wanted to take that approach further.

The letter suggested a special economic zone would work well.

Forum chairwoman and Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel said when an Auckland issue drove policy, there was a 'real risk of unintended consequences elsewhere'.

She said Canterbury was 'completely dependent' on migration in terms of filling short-term labour gaps and long-term opportunities.

'We do support 'New Zealanders first' in terms of an approach to policy, but the truth is there are not enough New Zealanders available in Canterbury who can work on farms and in businesses.'

Canterbury Employers' Chamber of Commerce chief executive Peter Townsend said he was concerned the proposed changes 'will compromise Christchurch and Canterbury'.

He said 70 per cent of immigration to the region was not because of the rebuild, but the underlying economy.

Townsend said the unemployment rate in Christchurch city was 4.9 per cent and, excluding the city, the unemployment rate in wider Canterbury was 2.7 per cent.

'Migrants do not come … at the expense of local employment opportunities. They come to New Zealand to earn, to spend, to contribute and to create opportunities,' he wrote in a column. 

'It is hard to believe that locals looking for jobs in our region cannot find them.' 

Christchurch hospitality figure Richard Sinke, who owns Dux Central and Dux Dine, said he could not run successful restaurants without experienced migrant chefs.

'They're very hard to find in New Zealand.'

Sinke's mother had just moved into a retirement home where many of the staff were immigrants, and he said that was an important consideration for Canterbury's ageing population.

'How will they ever run all our rest homes without migrants?'

Ashburton farmer and Federated Farmers Mid Canterbury provincial chairman Willy Leferink said the region's farmers relied 'heavily' on migrant workers, especially from India, Nepal and the Philippines.

He said labourers were hard to find in Ashburton. Workers laid off from the Silver Fern Farms Fairton plant were 'pretty much' already absorbed into other industries.

Leferink said successful industries like farming, hotels and building relied on migrants. People wanted to move to New Zealand to be part of those industries. 'Immigration is a result of success.'

Immigration is a key issue for the Canterbury Mayoral Forum and a core part of their Canterbury Regional Economic Development Strategy, which was refreshed on Friday.

The national unemployment rate was 4.9 per cent, while for Canterbury including Christchurch city it was 4 per cent in the March 2017 quarter, Statistics NZ said. 

The mayors were yet to receive a response to the letter. A spokeswoman for Woodhouse said the office received the letter and 'it is with the minister for response'. The Prime Minister's office had not responded to request for comment at the time of publication.

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