Immigrant English Language Tests

In US based nativist, white nationalist and/or eco-fascist circles there have been various confected or over blown issues that the John Tanton founded anti-immigration network or movement pivots round.  These include the ‘environment’, blaming or citing immigration, refugees, population growth, temporary workers, dependents, international students, IQ, Islam, the ‘great replacement theory’ and the English language to create voter antipathy towards non European immigrants, centrist policies and liberal democracy.  

From SPLC 2018 in ‘Anti-immigrant hate group ProEnglish visits White House’

‘Officials from ProEnglish, a longtime anti-immigrant hate group founded by white nationalist John Tanton, recently visited the White House and met with a senior legislative aide to the President, according to a January 23 post on the ProEnglish website. ….In the late 1970s Tanton, a retired eye-doctor from Michigan, began constructing a constellation of anti-immigrant groups that today makes up the organized nativist movement in America.’ 

As usual, much of the same agit prop is imported into Australia by nativists, conservatives, eco-fascists, political parties (including the left i.e. Labor), think tanks and media to then have governments adopt policies not grounded in science nor reality.  For previous examples, Labor’s appointment of Minister for Sustainable Population (Gillard government) and much tinkering with visa and/or immigration application processes by the LNP conservative coalition to add further hurdles to genuine applicants; backgrounded by MPs and elites who lack any knowledge of communication, culture and learning theory, let alone other languages.

From The Guardian:

‘English test for Australian partner visas reveals Coalition’s true nationalist colours

Tim Soutphommasane

Our net overseas migration is going negative, so what problem is solved by making migrant English a prerequisite of love?

Australia has two faces when it comes to immigration and multiculturalism.

There’s the face of multicultural triumphalism. This is the Australia that likes to celebrate our success as a nation of migrants. An Australia that sees it as a mark of progress that our nationhood, once defined by the ideal of White Australia, now embraces diversity.

Then there’s the face of nationalist exclusion. While our political leaders like to boast we’re the greatest multicultural nation on the planet, some go out of their way to undermine that achievement. Words are never matched by deed. Whatever they might say, they signal that some of us don’t really belong here, that some of us are more Australian than others.

The federal government’s budget last week sent one such unmistakable signal. It may have been lost amid the mammoth deficit numbers but the budget papers revealed the federal government is introducing an English language test for people seeking partner visas to move to Australia. Sponsors who are permanent residents from non-English speaking backgrounds would also be subject to the test…..

…..You can’t blame them for being anxious. History tells us how requirements such as these operate. An infamous dictation test was the cornerstone of the White Australia policy, which in the 20th century served to restrict non-white, non-European immigration. Given the lack of details accompanying the budget announcement, it’s understandable that many are worried their partners will need to pass the 21st century equivalent…..

….Given that net overseas migration is heading negative, what exactly is the policy problem that the federal government is trying to solve here?…

…..It’s tempting to see these moves as a continuation of a trend. The Coalition has long indulged a hardline politics around immigration and has long been suspicious of multiculturalism. It may like to put forward a triumphalist face on diversity, but it just as often adopts one of nationalist exclusion. That’s where its instincts lie…..

….Indeed, how can we take any government talk of Australian values seriously when the Department of Home Affairs is happy to grant a visa to people with histories of far-right, white nationalist activism, as it did with YouTuber Lauren Southern, who is currently living in Australia? How can we take it seriously when a former Australian prime minister can be arguably unpatriotic and work for a foreign power, as Tony Abbott is now doing for the British government’s Board of Trade?

Just a few examples, you might say, of how speaking fluent English in no way guarantees that your values are consistent with our liberal democracy, or that your loyalty will be with Australia.’

For more articles and blogs about Australian immigration news, Australian politics, immigration, nativism, populist politics and white nationalism click through.

Lobby Groups, Policy, Government and Influence

In Australia and the Anglo world of UK and US especially, political parties mostly of the right can be compromised by lobbying, especially in government.

The Liberal (conservative) Party in Australia, like its coalition partner the National Party (nominally based upon regional and/or agricultural interests), has become hollowed out through declining (grounded) membership, lack of original or organic policy making, deferral to lobbyists and US libertarian influenced think tanks in providing ‘oven ready’ policy.

Policy is then sold to both voters via media e.g. News Corp, 9Fairfax and 7, to MPs and committees directly, also ‘astro turfed’, then enacted and legislated, while often flying under the radar e.g. using cultural ‘wedge’ issues to deflect attention, with unclear sources of funding.

Following is an excerpt of an article from John Menadue, part of a series called ‘Lobbyland’ in Australia. 

LobbyLand. The scourge of powerful special interests and lobbyists.

By JOHN MENADUE | On 1 October 2020

A major reason for the loss of trust in governments and parliaments is the way powerful special interests with their lobbyists have come to dominate the public debate and skew decisions in their favour. The fossil fuel  sector is the most obvious and recent example…..

…..Lobbying has grown dramatically in recent years, particularly in Canberra. It now represents a growing and serious corruption of good governance and the development of sound public policy. In referring to the so called ‘public debate’ on climate change, Professor Ross Garnaut highlighted the ‘diabolical problem’ that vested interests brought to bear on public discussion on climate change.

Martin Parkinson, a former  Secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, has warned about ‘vested interests’ who seek concessions from government at the expense of ordinary citizens.  Some time ago the former ACCC Chairman, Graeme Samuel, cautioned us that ‘A new conga line of rent seekers is lining up to take the place of those that have fallen out of favour’. In referring to opposition to company tax and carbon pollution reform policies, Ross Gittins in the SMH said ‘industry lobby groups [have] become less inhibited in pressing private interests at the expense of the wider public interest. [They] are ferociously resistant to reform proposals.’

These problems are widespread and growing.

There are about 280 lobbying entities registered in Canberra with the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet. They lobby on behalf of over 3600 clients and employ close to 900 staff as lobbyists.

On top of these ‘third party’ lobbyists, there are the special interests who conduct their own lobbying, such as the Minerals Council of Australia, the Australian Pharmacy Guild and the Business Council of Australia.

These lobbyists encompass a range of interests including mining, clubs, hospitals, private health insurance funds, business and hotels that have all successfully challenged government policy and the public interest in many ways.

Just think what the Minerals Council of Australia did to defeat the Mining Super Profits Tax and  bring down Kevin Rudd as Prime Minister. That same Council led the campaign to defeat the Carbon Tax which remains the most sensible way to cut carbon pollution by taxing ‘externalities’….

…..With journalism under-resourced, the media depends increasingly on the propaganda and promotion put into the public arena by lobby groups. Many of the so-called economic and business economists we read, hear and see on our media are in the employ of the banks and accounting firms with their own self-interested agendas. It was no surprise that they gave us no inkling of the malaise and corruption of the banks. Only a Royal Commission exposed what was really happening….

…..All proposals by special interest groups should be accompanied by a public interest impact statement prepared by an independent and professional body. This statement should be made public and would be attached to representations from the interest group. Major private consulting firms and the four large accounting firms should be excluded from this process as many of them have shown themselves to be compromised in the interests of their clients.

‘Think tanks’ such as the Institute of Public Affairs and the Sydney Institute, which are secretly funded and act as fronts for vested interests, should not receive tax benefits….

…… No minister or senior official should work with a vested interest group that they have been associated with for at least five years after retirement or resignation. It is estimated that more than 50% of registered lobbyists have previously worked in government, for the  Coalition and Labor.

Adequate funding of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, to ensure it can assert the public interest and promote public debate, is now more important than ever. The ABC, despite its obvious shortcomings, is still the most trusted media institution in the country. News Corp is the least trusted.

For more articles about Australian politics, climate change, conservative, fossil fuel pollution, libertarian economics, media and political strategy.