Immigration Policy: What Should the UK Really Be Learning From Australia?
Channel: COMPAS, University of Oxford
Date: 2021-09-30

In conversation:

Henry Sherrell, Migration Fellow, Grattan Institute and Madeleine Sumption, Director, Migration Observatory

The post-Brexit work visa rules introduced in January this year were widely publicised as an ‘Australian-style points-based system’. But Australia’s labour migration system is in flux and has seen large shifts in policy and practice over the last decade. This webinar hosted in collaboration with the Grattan Institute, a leading Australian think tank, will unpick how the UK and Australia have dealt with thorny issues in labour migration policy, and what they can learn from each other. How restrictive should migration policy towards low-wage workers be? How should the immigration system define skill? Is a points system the best way of managing labour migration?

About the speakers:

Henry Sherrell is Migration Fellow at the Grattan Institute, an Australian public policy think tank. He is a policy analyst with experience in government, consulting, and research. Prior to joining Grattan, Henry worked for the Department of Immigration and Citizenship, a Federal MP, and the Federal Parliamentary Library.

Madeleine Sumption is the Director of the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford. She is a policy specialist focusing on the impacts of migration policies and the role of migrants in the labour market. Before joining Oxford, Madeleine was Director of Research for the international program at the Migration Policy Institute (MPI) in Washington, DC. Madeleine is also a member of the Migration Advisory Committee, an independent panel that advises the UK Government on migration issues.