Rupert Murdoch praises Australian immigration

Media tycoon Rupert Murdoch has urged the government to maintain its levels of Australian immigration at a tribute dinner for Australia's richest man, an Australian immigrant, reports The Australian.

The News Corporation head purported Frank Lowy, a Hungarian migrant, to be proof that Australian immigration is integral to the success of the nation. Murdoch argued that the future of Australia is dependent on keeping the migrant flow strong and building Australia to be a nation built on attracting skills from overseas.

"In my recent Boyer Lectures I spoke of the importance to Australia's future of a liberal immigration system," Mr Murdoch said.

"Few other Australians embody the breadth of achievement or the contribution to Australia's prosperity made by immigrants in this country than Frank Lowy."

Mr Lowy is the founder of the now international business Westfields shopping centres.

As both the Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull were guests at the dinner, the right people would have taken on board the message that the Australian skilled migration quota should remain at its record levels.

As it stands, the government has not yet made a decision regarding the 2009-10 Australian skilled migration quota, but have suggested that they would keep the record 133,000 skilled visas as a ceiling so that they can continue to attract large numbers of skilled workers emigrating to Australia to plug the skills gaps and build the Australian economy.

The Australian Visa Bureau is an independent consulting company specialising in helping people with emigrating to Australia.