Immigration soon to reach record high
animals including kakapo, Our unique and endangered
the work being done tuatara, mudfish, frogs, bats,
Areas: Science (+ to save these animals. Learning
Social Studies) Environmental Education,
Conservation; Related themes and concepts: Environment; Problem solving. Immigration is set to hit new record levels, pushing up house prices over the coming year, but Prime Minister John Key believes immigrants’ skills are needed and enough houses are ‘‘in the pipeline’’ in Auckland to house the influx.
In their monthly update to ministers yesterday Treasury officials said net permanent and longterm (PLT) migration in the year ending March was ‘‘likely to exceed our [December] Half Year Update forecast of a peak of 52,400’’.
Inflows were expected to start easing in the first half of this year, and the impact on house prices and household wealth appeared more subdued in this cycle, possibly because of the concentration of 20-34 year olds in the numbers.
‘‘However, it is possible that the strength in PLT arrivals recently may begin to impact housing demand more significantly over the coming year,’’ they warned.
Key said there was no question immigration has some impact on housing.
‘‘Generally the Reserve Bank takes the view that net migration is positive for the economy but has some spill over implications.’’
The Government could control migration flows, as it had during the global financial crisis.
‘‘At the moment the advice we get is that . . . these people are actually significantly adding to the economy.’’
But NZ First leader Winston Peters said immigration was more than twice the level per head of population in Britain.
‘‘Yet the prime minister is ignoring the warning from Treasury that record arrivals will markedly hit house prices this year, just as he ignored the OECD report last year over our ‘largely uncontrolled’ immigration numbers, particularly of working students . . . He should have started turning the tap down a long time ago.’’
Treasury officials said the economy was expected to record strong growth in the December quarter, although the drought may hit agricultural output.