Kiwis get their vote on
NEW Zealanders living and working in Australia are poised be given the right to vote in elections, Anthony Albanese has revealed.
The Australian Prime Minister made the major announcement standing beside his New Zealand counterpart, Jacinda Ardern, after their leaders’ meeting in Sydney on Friday.
Mr Albanese said he would ask a parliamentary committee to consider the change, as part of the “normal review process” that occurs after a federal election.
“We’ll be asking (the committee) to consider whether there’s a way to return to systems that have existed in the past of giving New Zealand people who are here in Australia – contributing to society, paying taxes, working – voting rights here in Australia as well,” he said.
“We won’t pre-empt those processes, but it is, I think, a really commonsense position to at least examine.”
The two prime ministers hatched the plan during Ms Ardern’s trip to Sydney – her second visit to Australia since Mr Albanese was elected prime minister in May.
Ms Ardern and Mr Albanese spoke to reporters after two days of meetings with some of their respective cabinet ministers and a delegation of Kiwi business leaders.
They outlined some plans for a “reset” of the relationship, including proposed changes to immigration laws so that no New Zealander or Australian is “rendered permanently temporary”.
Mr Albanese said their two governments would work on a new pathway to Australian citizenship for New Zealanders by Anzac Day 2023.
Ms Ardern said: “We’ve long argued that New Zealanders are Australia’s best migrants.
“If you look at the Census, New Zealanders tend to translate into citizenship at a rate of about 30 per cent. For other nationalities in Australia, it’s closer to 60 per cent, so that demonstrates some of the barriers that exist.”
Mr Albanese also said he would apply “commonsense” to dealing with people deported under Australia’s “501” deportation policy who had no real relationship with New Zealand.
The policy has been used primarily to deport New Zealand citizens with criminal convictions, even if they have lived their entire lives in Australia. It has been a source of tension between the two countries since it was introduced by the Australian Coalition government in 2014.
“Where you have a circumstance where someone has lived their entire life effectively in Australia with no connection whatsoever to New Zealand, then common sense should apply,” Mr Albanese said.
They also reiterated their commitment to economic and defence cooperation, engaging with their smaller Pacific island neighbours, and tackling climate change.