At 4.35pm this afternoon, under the cover of a pandemic, the Morrison Government announced its plan to privatise Australia's visa system was dead. This is an enormous win for the over 2000 public sector workers whose jobs were set to be cut under this dodgy deal.
The public health, social and economic impact of COVID-19 has been the latest in a series of events that has exposed flaws in the Government's misguided proposal. Critical government infrastructure should never have been put out to market, and the current health security crisis reinforces this.
Since 2018, CPSU members have been campaigning hard against the sale of our visa system to for profit private corporations. The sale of this service to private companies posed a serious threat to thousands of Australian jobs that would most likely have been sent offshore.
CPSU National Secretary Melissa Donnelly said, "Today's backflip is an enormous win for the over 2000 APS workers whose jobs were on the chopping block. This win would not have happened without CPSU Home Affairs member's tireless campaign to stop the privatization of Australia's visa system."
"This was always a friendless plan, universities, migration experts and conservative pundits have all been calling for the government to abandon it. What is extraordinary that it took a global health pandemic for the government to see the flaws of this plan."
"COVID-19 has further exposed the flaws in the Morrison Government's plan - it is simply irresponsible for any government to hand over our visa system to private interests. We are glad that Scott Morrison has finally seen sense and canned the plan."
"When our nation is facing great uncertainty, Australians expect the Government to back local jobs and the integrity of vital public services, not flog off essential services to political donors' multi-national companies. This is a win for the security and health of the Australian community."
