Mimicking populists will not ease cost of living or boost productivity, Mathias Cormann warns
Former minister and OECD head urges Australia not to adopt migration caps, with research showing migrants boost employment Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australia’s mainstream political parties are being warned not to adopt populist policies such as migration caps to address voters’ grievances over the cost of living. Instead, Australia’s longest-serving finance…
Former finance minister Mathias Cormann is warning Australia's mainstream political parties not to adopt populist policies like migration caps in an effort to tackle the cost of living crisis. Instead, he urges politicians to focus on boosting productivity to lower living costs over the long term. Cormann, now the OECD secretary-general, argues that mimicking populists will not only alienate voters but also fail to deliver the promised results.
He points to research from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) showing that migrants actually boost employment and have no negative impact on the wages of Australian-born workers. To address the concerns of voters, Cormann emphasizes the need for more housing supply, improved infrastructure, better services, and a more diverse migration intake.
He believes that Australia's best path forward is to grow through productivity, rather than seeking quick fixes like tariffs and caps.
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