Economic Development Minister Stuart Nash outlines what the Government may change about New Zealand's immigration settings. BusinessNZ says New Zealand will continue to need lower skilled migrant workers and will suffer if their numbers are heavily curtailed. A speech delivered by Economic Development Minister Stuart Nash, who was standing in for sick Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi, made it clear there would be no return to the previous immigration settings and suggested use of lower skilled temporary migrant labour had pushed down wages. BusinessNZ chief executive Kirk Hope disputed that, and he said the “disappointing” announcement failed to recognise the importance of migrant workers across all skill levels, including working holidaymakers. Hope said New Zealand would likely struggle to find sufficient labour for multibillion dollar infrastructure projects.

Source: Stuff May 17, 2021 07:40 UTC