New Zealand politicians to discuss the impact of current levels of migration

Politicians belonging to all major parties will argue for or against current levels of migration to understand if it was benefiting or hurting New Zealand on18 August at the NZAMI (New Zealand Association for Migration and Investment) annual conference in Auckland on August 18. June Ranson, NZAMI chair, said that as migration seems to be a hot issue ahead of the General Election in 2017, their members expect to know how aware their politicians are on this crucial issue. Considered to be the largest membership organisation representing New Zealand’s immigration professionals, its members are said to possess expertise and insights into how immigration policies affect New Zealand businesses and migrants. She said that they were watching media reports every day of some politicians saying that too many people were entering the country and therefore their numbers need to be reduced. On the flip side, there are some who feel that New Zealand needs more skilled workers to satisfy its social and economic requirements. Ranson hoped that their panel discussion, which will be initiated by Mark Sainsbury, a leading journalist, and views from their members will throw some light on the issue and help politicians frame better policies. She said that their members were, however, of the view that migration was benefiting New Zealand a lot and it needs to be supported. Conference of the NZAMI will see the Michael Woodhouse, Minister of Immigration, presiding as a keynote speaker. He will be joined by deputy chief executive – Immigration, MBIE (Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment) to talk about how the future of immigration will impact the country. It will also feature a panel discussion on ‘Immigration versus tourism’ in which Paul Spoonley, Professor, Pro Vice-Chancellor, Massey University, Bruce Robertson, At Your Service Aotearoa and Mark Futter, CEO Chamber of Commerce, Lower Hutt will participate in. If you are looking to migrate to New Zealand, get in touch with Y-Axis, a leading immigration consultancy, to apply for a relevant visa.