Yup.
Alan B.

Eight billion and counting....
When will we ever come to our senses and accept that the only problem we have is too many of us!!

No need to worry, our Glorious Labor Government is doing deals with Uncle Xi as we speak. New South Guangdong will welcome in many hundreds of thousands of Chinese immigrants per year...meanwhile all "good Aussies" will get an all expenses paid sea voyage back to their new, plushly appointed accommodation in one of the many vacant "cities" around China- with a course of their choice in "re-education" subjects alongside a Uhigur comrade.

they're new supporters of Labor.
Maverick,
Been saying that since Day 1. That trade started in the Goaf days ! Enclaves are now the sponges of Govt funding.

No, we do not have have high immigration, but high temporary border movements or churn over counted under the UNPD defined NOM (inflated in 2006), predominantly students who are temporary residents, deemed net financial contributors e.g. GST, then majority depart; free money.

Conversely, like the comments section here, the permanent population is ageing and creating population growth through longevity and tugging on budgets more, but we are about to enter 'the big die off' for two decades cleaning up the oldies and boomers, 5 million.

Optimum or balanced population numbers by mid century, or is it qualitative issues?

Everybody in Australia, except "Andras" Smith, works with the Treasury/ABS definition of net migration, and accepts that we have high migration. The final figure for 2022-23 is 548,000, thrashing the previous record by well over 200,000. The momentum has barely flagged, in 2023-24.

But the Treasurer claims last week that he is taking "quite substantial action" to "put downward pressure" on migration. Even by his debased standards, the most extraordinary lie