CANBERRA (Pacnews) — Australia is to increase its intake of migrants in the next financial year.
Immigration Minister Phillip Ruddock has told a national migration conference in Sydney that the overall number could reach as high as 122,000.
He spelled out this year’s policy, saying the total number of migrants will be as high as 110,000—up 12,000 from last year’s figure.
He said the emphasis will be on skilled migrants, with 60 percent set aside for those people.
“This will be the largest skilled stream and the largest program in a decade.”
In the humanitarian category, Ruddock said 12,000 places will be set aside, with 4,000 of those places to be used for offshore applications—potentially for those asylum seekers accepted by Australia from the so-called Pacific solution countries.
