Eight in 10 Australians want immigration radically cut, six in 10 agree with the statement that there are “too many migrants in Australia”, and about half believe the government is importing Labor voters, a new poll has found.
In a nationally representative survey of 1,936 Australians carried out by Fox and Hedgehog for the Institute of Public Affairs published last week, a 79% supermajority wanted net overseas migration to be 100,000 or lower – about four times less than the Albanese government’s average yearly intake since 2022.
In response to the same questions about desired net overseas migration, 31% of respondents wanted “zero or negative”, and only 9% desired an intake at or above the current yearly average.
The poll also found that 54% of respondents agreed with the statement “I no longer recognise the country I grew up in”, and 48% agreed that current levels of migration are a deliberate strategy by the Labor Party to increase the government’s share of votes, with only 22% in disagreement.
Another 63% want Australia’s migration program to prioritise immigrants from “countries which share our values, such as the United Kingdom, Canada and New Zealand”, and 77% want a requirement for migrants to sign up to Australian values and standards, and be deported if they fail to uphold them
Respondents overwhelmingly underestimated the number of migrants entering Australia since 2022, which stands at more than 2 million arrivals for a net migration intake of about 1.4 million.
“Of those surveyed, 84% underestimated the number of migrants who arrived between 2022 and 2025. The least likely cohorts to underestimate the level of migration were non-citizen [visa] holders themselves, Australians aged 18-24, and supporters of One Nation,” the poll stated.
“The most likely cohorts to underestimate the level of migration were Australians aged over 65, supporters of the Labor Party, and those who voted ‘Yes’ in the 2023 Indigenous Voice to Parliament referendum.”
Voters also said they would be “more likely to support the Coalition if it offered a policy to ‘substantially’ reduce migration, however, only 31% of respondents believe the Coalition would actually deliver on that promise if they were elected”.
The 43% of respondents who stated they “would be more likely to support the Coalition if it adopted a policy of significantly reducing migration” included 28% of Labor voters.
Daniel Wild, Deputy Executive Director of the Institute of Public Affairs, said the political establishment had “failed our nation” with years of unwanted and unrestrained mass immigration.
“The number of people coming to settle in Australia reached record highs, as the size of Australia’s migrant population is growing larger than ever. The Albanese government has been unable or unwilling to genuinely reform our migration system,” he said.
Header image: Left, Muslims pray in Melbourne’s CBD on Friday (Islamic Council of Victoria). Right, Sikhs hold a parade in Sydney (SBS Punjabi).
