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The Australian government has announced a consultation on draft legislation intended to protect the Australian labour market from firms which knowingly employ illegal labour. Chris Bowen MP, the Australian Immigration Minister, announced the consultation on the Migration Amendment (Reform of Employer Sanctions) Bill 2012.
The UK Border Agency has opened two mobile biometric clinics in the Malaysian states of Sarawak and Sabah, which are both situated on the island of Borneo. One clinic opened in Kuching, Sarawak on August 17th 2012 and another opened in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah on 18th August 2012. The clinics are run in partnership with VFS Global. They enable Malaysians from the island of Borneo to submit their biometric information without travelling to the capital, Kuala Lumpur, which is on the Malaysian mainland. All applications for a UK general visitors' visa or a Tier 1 or Tier 2 work visa or a Tier 4 student visa must provide biometric information.
Fact-finding missions by the Australian Defence Force (ADF) have shown that the asylum seeker detention centres on Nauru and Manus, Papua New Guinea, are in poor states of repair. Last week the Australian government legislated to re-open the centres, which were closed down eight years ago when the Australian Labor Party came to power. The Australian Home Office Minister Jason Clare said last week that the Nauru centre would be opened 'in weeks not months'.
The Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) predicts that annual net overseas immigration will rise slowly to about 208,000 in the year ending in June 2016 from its current level of around 198,000 in the year ending in June 2012.
An application to grant temporary work visas to 2,062 foreign skilled workers has been submitted to the Australian government. The workers would work in Australian resources projects The application, made by British recruitment firm Cape, is the biggest block application for temporary '457' visas yet made. It became public when a series of letters between Cape Australia, unions and the Australian government were leaked to the Australian Sunday Times newspaper. Australian unions oppose the application calling it a 'slap in the face for Australian workers.'
Jason Kenney, the Canadian minister responsible for immigration, announced a series of reforms to the Canadian Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) on 17th August 2012. Mr Kenney said that he hoped that the changes would enable skilled immigrants to 'hit the ground running'.
The FSWP enables applicants to progress towards permanent residence in Canada. Applicants are assessed on a points 'grid' that measures their 'overall capacity to adapt to Canada's labour market.' The grid measures factors including education, work experience and knowledge of English or French.