Can Slashing Immigration Fix Australia's Housing Crisis?
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Governments in developed countries around the world are grappling with their migration policies and Australia is no exception, with the Labor and Liberal parties proffering competing plans on how to slash the number of people arriving at its borders.
This week on the podcast, host Rebecca Jones asks Abul Rizvi about Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton's migration policies ahead of the May 3 federal election — and whether they will actually help Australia's housing crisis.
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Hamilton Spectator
an hour ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Premier Smith visits rural Alberta to lend voice to local byelection candidate
THREE HILLS - Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is winning applause but also facing pointed questions from party members ahead of three byelections. Smith, in her role as United Conservative leader, appeared at a town hall meeting attended by about 300 in Three Hills Monday. She came with Tara Sawyer, who is running under the party banner in the June 23 byelection in the area. Smith was applauded for policies including a demanding a better deal from the federal government, her government's income tax cut, her vow to protect unvaccinated Albertans from discrimination, and new rules including a ban on transgender athletes in women's sport. 'Ten years of (federal) Liberal policies have gotten us nowhere,' Smith told the crowd. 'Alberta will move forward with confidence and clarity. We will develop our economy. We will exercise our constitutional rights, we will forge the future that Alberta deserves.' Sawyer is running in Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills against Bev Toews of the NDP, Cameron Davies of the Republican Party of Alberta, and Bill Tufts of the Wildrose Loyalty Coalition. Davies has criticized the UCP for failing to agree to a byelection debate while the UCP said it wasn't possible due to a scheduling conflict. Davies said the UCP was dodging accountability and democracy and avoiding the elephant in the room: talk of Alberta independence. Sawyer disagreed, telling the crowd, 'Some forces are trying to divide us and split the vote. We cannot let that happen.' Not everyone was on side. Jon Sedore, a longtime UCP member who lives in the nearby town of Trochu, said that argument doesn't hold water. 'We're in the most conservative riding of Alberta and of Canada, so I'm not concerned about the NDP here,' he said in an interview. He said he doesn't think Sawyer and the UCP have been clear about where they stand on separation, and he doesn't like Smith appointing Sawyer rather than holding a candidate race. 'I don't like the top-down approach,' he said, while also expressing strong support for Smith and her efforts to exercise more constitutional rights for the province. Sedore said questions about Alberta's independence should be answered by all candidates so voters know where they each stand. Smith has long held that she wants to see Alberta remain in Canada, but recently passed legislation to lower the threshold for citizens to spark a referendum on leaving Confederation. She's also noted that her party wanted to move quickly to have a candidate in Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills in place in order to save taxpayers' money by holding the vote in conjunction with byelections in Edmonton Strathcona and Edmonton Ellerslie. NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi is running in Edmonton Strathcona to gain a seat in the legislature about a year after winning the party's top job. The Edmonton-Ellerslie byelection is to replace NDP member Rod Loyola. He stepped down earlier this year to run in the federal election. Sawyer, speaking with The Canadian Press, echoed Smith's stance, saying she's fighting for a strong, sovereign Alberta within Canada, but it's up to the people to decide whether a referendum is held. 'I understand we're in a pressure cooker situation. I think it's important for (Albertans) to know that they are being heard,' she said. Sawyer, a farmer and former chair of the Grain Growers of Canada, said Davies' suggestion that she is the UCP's hand-picked 'Ottawa-first' candidate is 'hogwash.' 'I have raised my family here. I grew up here, and my entire life has been to be a voice to improve my community,' she said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 10, 2025. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
CNN
3 hours ago
- CNN
Who is David Huerta, the California labor leader who was arrested in Los Angeles?
Immigration Labor unionsFacebookTweetLink Follow A revered California labor leader arrested for his involvement in protests decrying immigration raids in Los Angeles is out on bond, after demonstrators came out nationwide Monday to demand his release. David Huerta, the president of the Service Employees International Union California, was arrested Friday as he protested an immigration raid in Los Angeles. After three nights of detention, Huerta was released on a $50,000 bond Monday afternoon, though he remains charged with conspiracy to impede an officer, a felony that could result in up to six years in prison, according to the US Attorney's Office. A well-known figure in the California labor movement, Huerta started his career mobilizing immigrant janitors in Los Angeles to demand better working conditions as part of a 1990s campaign called Justice for Janitors, according to a UNI Global Union statement. He was once praised by former President Barack Obama's administration for his efforts to advocate for immigrant workers. 'As a labor leader, David has worked to build an immigrant integration program that includes English classes for union members. Under his leadership, hundreds of SEIU-USWW members have become U.S. citizens. In addition, he has advocated for comprehensive immigration reform by empowering SEIU-USWW members to become their own advocates for change,' an archived White House post from the Obama administration reads. Huerta's union has described him as 'a father, a union leader, and a fighter for immigrant justice.' Supporters in California rallied around Huerta when he was released from custody Monday afternoon, chanting 'Si se puede.' Speaking outside the courthouse after his release, Huerta said authorities are trying to make an example out of him, cautioning that while he was released on bond, other detainees are still locked up, with some allegedly unable to see their lawyers or attend critical court hearings. 'We will have our time for justice, but we must do it in a way that we demonstrate the power of working people across this country and stand united,' Huerta told the crowd. After Huerta was released Monday, his union released a statement: 'We are relieved that David is free and reunited with his family and we are deeply grateful to the hundreds of elected officials, civil rights leaders, labor partners and allies from across the nation who stood in solidarity and demanded David's release,' Service Employees International Union President April Verrett said. 'But this struggle is about much more than just one man,' Verrett continued. 'Thousands of workers remain unjustly detained and separated from their families. At this very moment, immigrant communities are being terrorized by heavily militarized armed forces.' The national union boasts about 2 million members in healthcare, the public sector and property services, with more than 700,000 workers represented throughout California. After Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials began performing targeted raids and arresting community members in the Los Angeles area last week, protestors came out in numbers to voice their objections. Huerta was among the demonstrators gathered in Los Angeles Friday at a business prosecutors say was suspected of unlawful employment and falsifying employment records. Prosecutors have accused Huerta of blocking access to a gate while law enforcement attempted to execute a search warrant and refusing to leave when asked, saying multiple times, 'it's a public sidewalk.' When a law enforcement vehicle approached the scene and Huerta refused to step aside, an officer tried to physically move him, prosecutors said. When Huerta pushed back, the officer pushed him to the ground, handcuffed and arrested him. Video of the incident shows the tense moments around the arrest, Huerta face down on the ground as multiple masked ICE agents surround and try to detain him, with demonstrators loudly objecting. The union has described his treatment at the hands of the masked officials as 'assault.' Huerta was later hospitalized and treated for injuries sustained during the arrest, SEIU said in a statement. As President Donald Trump called in the National Guard to quell the protests in Southern California – against the guidance of the governor – lawmakers around the nation condemned Huerta's arrest. 'David Huerta is a respected leader, a patriot, and an advocate for working people. No one should ever be harmed for witnessing government action,' California Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement. US Democratic Sens. Adam Schiff of California, Alex Padilla of California and Chuck Schumer of New York wrote a letter to the Department of Homeland Security, ICE and the Department of Justice Monday demanding a review of Huerta's arrest – including exactly how the labor leader was injured in the process. 'During a workplace enforcement action, Mr. Huerta, a well-known and deeply respected community leader, was exercising his lawful right to observe the conduct of immigration enforcement personnel,' the senators wrote. Schiff attended Huerta's initial appearance Monday, his team told CNN. Beyond Huerta's immediate release on bond, Democratic leaders are demanding the charge against him be dropped. 'House Democrats will stand with David Huerta for as long as it takes until the charges are dropped and the rogue federal actions that have been unleashed will be completely investigated and exposed,' House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries said in a statement. 'Free Huerta now!' massive crowds in Los Angeles chanted Monday. Their demands were echoed around the nation, as demonstrators took to the streets in at least a dozen cities, including San Francisco, Boston, Pittsburgh, Seattle, Washington, DC, Charlotte, North Carolina, and parts of Connecticut and New York. Members of Huerta's union, along with other labor leaders and workers, held up signs reading, 'FREE DAVID' and 'END ICE RAIDS.' Union leaders across other industries voiced their support for Huerta's due process. 'We must fight back. We reject these attacks on our communities and demand the immediate release of our union brother David Huerta,' Manny Pastreich, president of the property service workers labor group 32BJ SEIU, said while speaking at the demonstration in New York. 'The United Farm Workers, along with the entire labor movement, stands in strong solidarity with our comrade, labor leader David Huerta. We demand his immediate release and condemn indiscriminate sweeps targeting working class immigrants,' the United Farm Workers union said on X. The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees also chimed in: 'The apparent targeting of labor activists by federal authorities is unacceptable and dangerous,' the group said in a statement Monday. 'We stand united with David Huerta, immigrant workers, and all who seek justice.' And upon Huerta's release, the California Federation of Labor Unions said it was relieved to see its 'brother' out of custody and on bond. While many across the labor movement celebrated Huerta's release Monday, the focus has turned to the workers and family members still detained by immigration authorities. Huerta has thrown his support behind them. 'I know when we organize, we win,' he said Monday. CNN's Amanda Musa, Taylor Romine, Hannah Rabinowitz, Holmes Lybrand and Maureen Chowdhury contributed to this report.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Why turning Canada's new defence spending into economic growth may be ‘easier said than done'
The Liberal government announced a shift towards a Canadian defence industrial strategy on Monday, which has the potential to add jobs and grow the Canadian economy — but only if executed correctly, economists say. 'We will ensure every dollar is invested wisely, including by prioritizing made-in-Canada manufacturing and supply chains,' said Prime Minister Mark Carney during a speech in Toronto on Monday, where he announced Canada would be meeting its NATO two per-cent spending target. 'We should no longer send three quarters of our defence capital spending to America.' The announcement included $9.3 billion in additional defence expenditures this fiscal year. The funding would go towards addressing immediate operational needs, with $2.6 billion in investments for the recruitment and retaining of personnel and $844 million to repair and maintain Canadian Armed Forces equipment. But an additional $2.1 billion was also promised to 'strengthen' the government's relationship with the Canadian defence industry and re-orient a procurement strategy towards Canadian suppliers. Goldy Hyder, president and chief executive of the Business Council of Canada, said he is hopeful this marks the beginning of a process that will both strengthen Canada's defence and grow the Canadian economy. 'It's going to require a lot of work,' he said. 'I think the government has been given a licence to put more emphasis on things like this, which have been neglected for too long.' The plan included more investments in new submarines, ships, aircraft, artillery, and armed vehicles. Carney said the investment in military capabilities could 'transform our economy' but acknowledged none of the goals set out in his plan will come easily or quickly, including reforming the department of national defence's procurement process. The Royal Bank of Canada said the economic multiplier effects of the announcement in the short-run could be 'favourable' as the Canadian growth outlook is weak over the next couple of years and defence spending could help stimulate growth. 'Multipliers vary with intellectual property being the highest, while machinery and equipment is the lowest, given its high import content,' said RBC economists Cynthia Leach and Salim Zanzana, in a note. In the long-run, Leach and Zanzana said empirical research on the effect of defence spending on growth has found both negative and positive effects. 'Positive impacts tend to arise through industrial development, innovation, and infrastructure channels,' they said. 'Negative impacts tend to stem from capital leakage, fiscal overspending and the risk of diverting resources from more productive sectors of the economy.' The Canadian Association of Defence and Security Industries (CADSI), which represents 650 companies and directly employs 78,000 Canadians, welcomed the policy shift by the federal government but warned it will be for nothing if the procurement process does not change drastically. 'This is a heavy lift,' said Christyn Cianfarani, president and chief executive of the CADSI. 'This is a fundamental change in the culture of the public service that we're talking about.' Cianfarani said Monday's announcement would be a shift to a more agile way of procuring, moving to a shorter timeframe of one to six months, from the current average of five to 10 years for major capital investments. Jimmy Jean, chief economist at Desjardins Group, said Carney was right that Canada and other allies rely heavily on the United States for defence technologies and equipment. The U.S. defence sector alone has 40 per cent of the global market, while the European industry is dominated by leading national champions, with many companies owned in part by the state. Carney said Canada will draw more from its European partners, by participating in the European Union's ReArm Europe program. Right now, Canadian military exports are valued at $7 billion, which represents just one per cent of Canada's total exports of goods. CADSI said its companies generate $12.6 billion in annual revenues. Advocates agree the way to drive innovation and growth in the defence industry would be to provide significant investments in research and development. To accomplish this, Carney promised to create a new entity called 'Borealis' to provide funding for cutting edge research in areas like quantum computing and artificial intelligence. 'The potential spin-offs from that in terms of new businesses and businesses that can export their technologies around the world, that's really where the money is when it comes to generating wealth out of this,' said Jean. 'But it's easier said than done, when you're competing against established players in industries.' Robert Asselin, chief executive of U15 Canada, which represents 15 Canadian research universities, has long advocated for Canada to adopt a program similar to the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) in the United States. DARPA's mandate is to make investments in leading technologies for national defence and security purposes, but the outcomes often have civilian applications as well and have been commercialized to the economic benefit of the U.S. and American companies. The internet, GPS and voice recognition software are among the technologies it has been credited with accelerating. 'From an economic perspective, technology is out to make our economy more innovative and more productive,' Asselin said. 'Generally, our leading research universities are so well-positioned for this because they already do very neat work in all these promising sectors.' Canada has been a laggard on defence spending for over a decade and has faced pressure from its allies to increase its expenditures on its military. Canada spent 1.45 per cent of its GDP on defence in 2024-2025. In total, the department of national defence will spend $62.7 billion for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, up from the previous estimate of $53.4 billion. Desjardins said the new defence spending will worsen the deficit to roughly $65 billion for this fiscal year. 'Governments have to make choices,' said Hyder. 'You have to pay for these things; we have been calling for some time for program review, to find much of the savings that we think can be available to help fund some of the programs that are going to be necessary.' Carney acknowledged that the geopolitical situation has changed and threats to Canada are more 'immediate and acute.' Last week, United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced his country will boost its defence spending to 2.5 per cent of its GDP by 2027. Hyder said Canada is playing catch-up, as the NATO spending target, which was established in 2014, is set to increase later this month when leaders meet for this year's NATO summit in the Netherlands. The new target will be 3.5 per cent of GDP for core military spending and 1.5 per cent for defence-related investments. Cianfarani said 'in theory' all these promises from the federal government should create more jobs in the industry but will wait for proper execution from the federal government. 'It's like any business, you can have great vision coming from the CEO, but the reality is the CEO doesn't execute,' she said. 'It's the machine behind the CEO that has to execute.' • Email: jgowling@
