Malcolm Turnbull justifies new ‘Australian values’ test

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull attends a meeting at a hotel in Shanghai, China, April 14, 2016. Reuters/Aly Song

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull was quick to defend the new "Australian values" test, a part of the modified requirements to become an Australian citizen. The prime minister stressed that the country must continue to attract people who are willing to embrace Australian values regardless of their nationality or religion, and that the test puts Australian values at the very heart of Australian citizenship and pushes the country to become an even stronger and more successful multicultural country.

In his speech to the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Turnbull said changes to citizenship rules allow the country’s migration program to contribute further to social cohesion while enhancing the security of every Australian. “Our reforms are designed to get more out of our migration system, to realise its potential to contribute to our economy,” he added.

“We are not defined by race or culture. We are defined by commitment to political values,” Turnbull said. If an applicant fails three times, he will need to wait two years before he can take the test again.

“We want people to demonstrate they have worked, sent children to school,” immigration minister Peter Dutton said per the Business Insider. Dutton also mentioned that applicants’ records will be checked to guarantee that they were not perpetrators of domestic violence because these kinds of people, according to Dutton, should not become Australian citizens.

The Aussie leader and Dutton declared several major modifications to the rules of acquiring Australian citizenship in the wake of scrapping the 457 working visa program. The changes would require would-be Australians to pass new English language and "Australian values" test, and endure several more years of waiting to become a citizen of the Down Under.

Applicants must be permanent residents for at least four years before they can take tests. This requirement was increased from 12 months. Secondly, applicants should demonstrate a higher level of English with IELTS level 6. Turnbull said they’re doing people a favour with this new rule because would-be Australians who wish to be successful in Australia need to be competent in English.

Lastly, applicants need to demonstrate that they have integrated into the community. This will be determined through extra questions in the test.

Sydney Morning Herald notes that the changes are due to take effect from Thursday, but need to pass both houses of Parliament. At least 7 million permanent migrants have settled in the county since 1945. Some 190,000 places were available for permanent migrants in Australia's immigration program in 2014-15.