Half of Australia’s New Migrants Settling in Sydney and Melbourne: Report

Travellers wait in long service lines at the Sydney domestic airport in Sydney, Australia, on July 19, 2024. Saeed Khan/AFP via Getty Images

Research by the Institute of Public Affairs (IPA) shows that most migrants to Australia are settling in Melbourne and Sydney, with 57 percent establishing a base in these two cities.

The think tank’s analysis of Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data also revealed that 83 percent of all new migrants settled in one of this nation’s capital cities.

Data showed 29.3 percent of migrants settled in Sydney, 28.2 percent in Melbourne, 9.9 percent in Perth, and 9.4 percent in Brisbane.

Meanwhile, 5.4 percent settled in Adelaide, 1.6 percent in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), and 0.6 percent in Hobart and Darwin.

Outside the capital cities, the research revealed that 6.3 percent made a home in regional Queensland, 4.3 percent in regional New South Wales, and 2.3 percent in the rest of Victoria.

Capital Cities ‘Becoming Unlivable’: IPA

IPA Senior Research Fellow Kevin You said Australia’s capital cities were fast becoming unlivable due to years of record, unplanned mass migration.

He said this placed immense pressure on social services and caused congestion on roads and public transport with “no plan for how this will be fixed.”

“Since the election of the federal government, ABS data shows Australia has seen a record migration intake of 1.15 million, and our cities are straining under the pressure, with 8 out of 10 new arrivals settling in a metropolitan area,” he said.

Given Australia’s high housing prices, he raised concerns about the country’s lack of affordable housing.

“Home ownership is a fundamental component of the Australian way of life, yet governments are not serious about ensuring that all Australians have access to affordable housing,” You said.

He said Australia is not building enough homes for first-home buyers and new arrivals.

“Migration has played a critical role in our nation’s history, but this government is running the single largest mass migration program without a plan to house new arrivals. It is setting Australia up for an economic and social disaster,” he said.

This comes as Australia’s debate on immigration heats up, fueled by high interest rates, sky-high house prices, and rising costs of living.

Call for Immigration Levels to Match Homes Being Built

Shadow Treasurer Angus Taylor has called for immigration levels to match Australia’s capacity to build homes.

“We do need to make sure our immigration rates are in line with our capacity to build houses and that clearly hasn’t been the case,” he said in an interview on Sept. 5.

“In fact, the numbers show us that an increase in population of over 1.4 million since Labor came to power, this came out yesterday.”

ABS statistics show there was a net annual gain of 518,000 people in the year ending June 30. This was the largest net overseas migration since records began.

Migrant arrivals rose by 73 percent to 737,000 from 427,000 the previous year, while departures fell by 2 percent to 219,000. The next update on this data is expected on Dec. 13, 2024.

In response, the Albanese government announced in late August that it would cap the number of new international students to 270,000 in 2025.

“This will bring the number of new international student commencements, across higher education and VET, back to pre-pandemic levels,” Education Ministers Jason Clare, Immigration Minster Tony Burke, and Senator Murray Watt announced on Aug. 27.

“From 2026, the Albanese Government will encourage universities to create new supplies of student housing to benefit both domestic and international students as part of their future growth.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese appointed Burke as Immigration and Home Affairs Minister during a reshuffle in July 2024 to address these issues.

Debate on Migration’s Economic Impact

One Nation has raised concerns that increased migration is contributing to Australia’s Gross Domestic Productivity per capita, which fell by 0.4 percent in the June quarter.

“A major driver of this collapse in GDP per capita has been the massive increase in net migration under the Albanese Labor government, approximately 2,000,000,” said Pauline Hanson, leader of One Nation.

Meanwhile, New South Wales Libertarian MLC John Ruddick suggested there should be a five-year pause on immigration.

He said this would allow Australia to reassess and ensure that newcomers contribute to the “betterhood of Australia.”

“We have got to be very careful about our immigration. Half the world would cut their right arm off to live in Australia, and that’s fantastic, so we’ve got to be really selective about who we want,” he said.

“We want the cream of the world to come here, but I do believe we need a breather.”