The following information has been received by Migration Alliance from Kay Ransome:

Dear Community Liaison network members

On 13 May 2013 as part of the Federal Budget 2014-15 the Government announced that the Migration Review Tribunal and Refugee Review Tribunal would be amalgamated with the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, the Social Security Appeals Tribunal and the Classification Review Board. The amalgamation is planned to take effect on 1 July 2015. The amalgamation is planned to take effect on 1 July 2015 and the tribunals will fall under the portfolio of the Attorney General’s Department.

The battleground in the government’s sc457 review has now become more defined with both unions and industry bodies targeting the English-language standard as the key question the panel must decide on: should the panel recommend that the standard be maintained, or lowered?

The unions want it to be maintained given the current high-unemployment rates. But industry bodies indicate that due to the unrealistic English-language standards here, unemployment rates will go-up even further should employers be forced to send more jobs offshore in search of skills.

This stark industry warning has been put to the sc457 review panel by the Australian Industry Group (AIG), according to a report in The Australian.

Minimum English-language requirements were introduced in 2007 by the Howard government and raised by the former Labour government a few years later. Unions concerned about losing out jobs to foreign workers maintain that low English-standards threaten local jobs, lead to rorting and exploitation of workers.

Employers however maintain that evidence from their workforce surveys reveal that there is a national skills shortage which can be addressed with the lowering of the language standards to a level that is actually required in the workplace.

Join the Think Global VIP Delegation to Guangzhou & Shanghai for Australia China Business Week from 25th to 30th May.

To read more, please visit http://bricandchina.com/mission-to-acbw-china-2014/

David Thomas (pictured here) a BRIC Expert (Brazil, Russia, India, China) with a focus on China, and Dr Caroline Hong, Ambassador of the Migration Alliance, are co-leading the delegation.

China’s rich are funding business and investment opportunities in Australia via the Significant Investor Visa (SIV) scheme.

The magnitude of this development can be seen in the $650 million in legal/immigration fees spent by 65,000 applicants on Canada’s SIV equivalent.

These Australian opportunities are outlined in a recent SIV Newsletter produced by Basis Point Consulting.

Just a quick reminder to register your attendance for our information sessions.

There are still places available for the trade specific and general skills assessments information sessions in Melbourne and Perth.