Plan to get migrants to regions

The new Immigration Minister has pledged that regions with ‘‘genuine skill shortages’’ will get the migrants they need.

Iain Lees-Galloway said during a visit to Marlborough the new Government did not have a set target to cut migrants arriving to New Zealand.

Under current policy, Labour estimated net migration would fall by 20,000 to 30,000 a year, mostly by tightening the number of people granted student and work visas.

Lees-Galloway said the Government’s plan to ‘‘regionalise’’ migration would make it easier for regions with shortages to gain migrants and move migrants away from Auckland.

‘‘My commitment to employers in Marlborough is that we will ensure that where genuine skill shortages exist and where people are needed and you can demonstrate that people are needed and demonstrate that [people are needed] as a result of a shortage, not because of low pay or poor conditions, we will ensure you get the people you need.

‘‘We do not have a target for reducing overall net migration and actually, as our plans take a more regional approach to migration, [the plan] will actually serve the Marlborough region extremely well,’’ he said.

''We need to clamp down on poor providers, we do need to have a look at the labour market to make sure the immigration system is working well."

Immigration Minister Iain LeesGalloway