{"id":49452,"date":"2020-09-01T08:00:04","date_gmt":"2020-09-01T08:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/?p=49452"},"modified":"2021-12-22T14:48:11","modified_gmt":"2021-12-22T14:48:11","slug":"novel-coronavirus-covid-19-community-update-31-august-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/novel-coronavirus-covid-19-community-update-31-august-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) community update 31 August 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><b><span lang=\"EN-US\">Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) community update 31 August 2020<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/h1>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-49453 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Australia.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"140\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\"><strong>Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) community<\/strong><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><strong>update<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">Dear Community Representatives, thank you again for your engagement and efforts to support your communities through this time. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">We know that there is a lot of information available about COVID-19 and its impacts on the Australian community.\u00a0 We endeavour to keep you updated and hope that the information in this newsletter is useful for you to pass on to your communities.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\"><strong><u>Minister\u2019s address \u2013 Keeping Australians together at a time of COVID<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">On 28 August 2020, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs, The Hon Alan Tudge MP, gave an address to the National Press Club about social cohesion and keeping Australians together in the face of new challenges, including COVID. The Minister announced a number of measures to strengthen the bonds that bring Australians together, including that the Australian Government will lift the cap on class hours for the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) to help migrants become better equipped in learning English. NSW\/ACT Community Engagement will provide further updates to you about this and other measures as information becomes available in the coming weeks. A transcript of the address is attached above and can also be found at:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><a style=\"color: #000000; font-size: 20px;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.npc.org.au\/speaker\/2020\/702-alan-tudge\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/www.npc.org.au\/speaker\/2020\/702-alan-tudge<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #000080; font-size: 20px;\"><strong><u>Citizenship appointments resume<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #000080; font-size: 20px;\">Australian citizenship testing and interviews, which were suspended due to COVID-19 restrictions, have now resumed in Perth, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Canberra.\u00a0Eligible individuals will be contacted and invited to attend a citizenship appointment or test. There is no need to contact the Department about your citizenship appointment or test. In-person citizenship appointments and tests normally conducted by Services Australia in regional locations remain on hold. Details for the resumption of these services will be updated as information becomes available.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><a style=\"color: #000000; font-size: 20px;\" href=\"https:\/\/covid19.homeaffairs.gov.au\/citizenship\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/covid19.homeaffairs.gov.au\/citizenship<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\"><strong><u>Addition to critical skills for travel exemptions\u00a0<\/u><\/strong>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">There has been a recent addition to the critical skills exemptions to travel to Australia, specifically around granting an exemption to those providing\u00a0<em>critical skills in religious or theology fields.\u00a0<\/em>This is now listed on the Department\u2019s website at:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a style=\"color: #000000; font-size: 20px;\" href=\"https:\/\/covid19.homeaffairs.gov.au\/critical-skills-and-sectors.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/covid19.homeaffairs.gov.au\/critical-skills-and-sectors.<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\"><span lang=\"EN\">If you have any questions about\u00a0<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/covid19.homeaffairs.gov.au\/critical-skills-and-sectors\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/covid19.homeaffairs.gov.au\/critical-skills-and-sectors&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1599021426658000&amp;usg=AFQjCNE3t6btb-MDA5mFXq59KkZJj0QTcw\">critical skills and sectors<\/a>, and the travel exemption process or an existing critical skills travel exemption application please complete an online\u00a0<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/immi.homeaffairs.gov.au\/help-support\/departmental-forms\/online-forms\/enquiry-form-businesses-in-critical-sectors\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/immi.homeaffairs.gov.au\/help-support\/departmental-forms\/online-forms\/enquiry-form-businesses-in-critical-sectors&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1599021426658000&amp;usg=AFQjCNF6sxY1jA1gj1GbZIwEXaw1XWgKAw\">enquiry form<\/a>\u00a0at<\/span><span lang=\"EN\">:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><a style=\"color: #000000; font-size: 20px;\" href=\"https:\/\/immi.homeaffairs.gov.au\/help-support\/departmental-forms\/online-forms\/enquiry-form-businesses-in-critical-sectors\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/immi.homeaffairs.gov.au\/help-support\/departmental-forms\/online-forms\/enquiry-form-businesses-in-critical-sectors<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\"><strong><u>Cyber security and scams<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">17-21 August 2020 was Scams Awareness Week and while that campaign has officially finished for the year, scams have not. You can catch up on the useful resources released as part of Scams Awareness Week, including a new podcast from the makers of ABC consumer affairs TV show\u00a0<em>The Checkout<\/em>, called \u2018This Is Not Your Life\u2019 at the Scamwatch website:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><a style=\"color: #000000; font-size: 20px;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.scamwatch.gov.au\/news-alerts\/scams-awareness-week-2020\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/www.scamwatch.gov.au\/news-alerts\/scams-awareness-week-2020<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">The Australian Cyber Security Centre also has a webpage with a link for individuals and families with a range of resources:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><a style=\"color: #000000; font-size: 20px;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cyber.gov.au\/acsc\/view-all-content\/news\/are-you-cyber-safe-home\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/www.cyber.gov.au\/acsc\/view-all-content\/news\/are-you-cyber-safe-home<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">Cyber security has also been declared a national priority by the Australian Government. The Prime Minister recently announced the largest investment in cyber security ever, involving $1.3 billion to be spent over the next decade. A link to the Prime Minister\u2019s address is at:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><a style=\"color: #000000; font-size: 20px;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pm.gov.au\/media\/nations-largest-ever-investment-cyber-security\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/www.pm.gov.au\/media\/nations-largest-ever-investment-cyber-security<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.australia.gov.au\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.australia.gov.au\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1599021426659000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFXi4L_N4uoYi8-Sce1_H8uMhOKPw\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Updates<\/span><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">Stay up to date with the latest news and advice on COVID-19 from Australian Government agencies.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\"><strong><u><a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nsw.gov.au\/covid-19\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.nsw.gov.au\/covid-19&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1599021426659000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEIYefFumq1znUkTuhSRmQPv3lqKA\">NSW Updates<\/a><\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\"><strong><u><a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.covid19.act.gov.au\/home\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.covid19.act.gov.au\/home&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1599021426659000&amp;usg=AFQjCNG3yf5kXn9fP7lUN2xUvLc_yqbDGg\">ACT Updates<\/a><\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">*\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">Ensuring we remain connected with your communities continues to be a high priority for the Department of Home Affairs and the Australian Government. Your feedback is vital to the Department and informs policy, decision making and government messaging.\u00a0Please continue to pass your concerns and questions to us.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">In particular, we are very interested in your views and feedback on the following:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">Any community concerns<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">Racism or discrimination<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">Reception to government messaging<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">Community misconceptions<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">Issues related to travel restrictions and associated processes<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">Instances of misinformation or scams targeting your community<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">Any new economic impacts on the community<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">Any other emerging community issues.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">If you would like to stop receiving this email, please advise us accordingly.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">Stay safe and well!<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\"><strong>Department of Home Affairs, Community Engagement NSW\/ACT<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\"><strong>Regional Director:<\/strong>\u00a0Ms\u00a0Sneha Chatterjee<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">NSW Community Engagement team &#8211;\u00a0<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"mailto:nsw.community.engagement@homeaffairs.gov.au\">nsw.community.engagement@homeaffairs.gov.au<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\">ACT Community Engagement team &#8211;\u00a0\u00a0<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"mailto:act.community.engagement@homeaffairs.gov.au\">act.community.engagement@homeaffairs.gov.au<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000080;\"><strong><br \/>\nOFFICIAL<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-43363 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Australia.jpg\" alt=\"Australia\" width=\"200\" height=\"306\" \/><\/p>\n<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #800000; font-size: 28px;\">THE HON ALAN TUDGE<\/span><\/h1>\n<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-26399\" src=\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/Alan-Tudge-Headshot-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"Alan Tudge - Headshot\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" \/><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #800000; font-size: 28px;\">MINISTER FOR POPULATION, CITIES AND URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #800000; font-size: 28px;\">ACTING MINISTER FOR IMMIGRATION, CITIZENSHIP, MIGRANT SERVICES AND<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #800000; font-size: 28px;\">MULTICULTURAL AFFAIRS<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #800000; font-size: 28px;\">Address to the National Press Club<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #800000; font-size: 28px;\">Friday 28 August 2020<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #800000; font-size: 28px;\">Keeping Australians together at a time of COVID<\/span><\/h1>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">When Scott Morrison was sworn in as Prime Minister on August 24th 2018, he outlined<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">three commitments that would be his government\u2019s focus: keeping our economy strong;<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">keeping Australians safe; and keeping Australians together.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Australia is a very different place to what it was two years ago \u2013 with the COVID pandemic<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">having a devastating impact, particularly in Melbourne \u2013 but these commitments remain the<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">same.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Today I want to discuss the third of these commitments \u2013 keeping Australians together \u2013<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">and what we need to do to maintain our social cohesion, particularly in the current COVID<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">climate.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">COVID has already caused hundreds of deaths and massive damage to our economy, but in<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Melbourne at least, which remains under harsh lockdown and curfew, it has the potential to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">tear apart our social fabric if we are not careful.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">I want to begin this speech with a message for my fellow Victorians, and indeed all<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Australians, to continue to reach out to each other in these unprecedented times and make<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">the additional effort to maintain the community linkages which are the bonds that keep our<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">society together.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Today, I want to discuss at a broader strategic level the challenges we face as a nation in<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">maintaining our unity \u2013 not just due to COVID \u2013 but challenges we have not previously faced<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">as a nation. At least not to the same extent as we do now.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Whilst our immediate focus is on fighting the pandemic, we must also put in place the<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">building blocks for the medium and long term so that our society emerges in a stronger<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">place.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">A standard bearer in social cohesion<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">When discussing social cohesion, Australia\u2019s starting position is one of strength. <\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Our nation is not perfect, but it is as strong and united as any country on earth.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Consider some of the data.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">According to the Scanlon Foundation (which provides the most comprehensive annual<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">assessment of Australia\u2019s social cohesion), 90 per cent of Australians had a \u201cgreat\u201d or<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">\u201cmoderate\u201d sense of belonging in Australia; 84 percent were \u201cvery happy\u201d or \u201chappy\u201d over<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">the last year, while 62 per cent were \u201coptimistic\u201d or \u201cvery optimistic\u201d about Australia\u2019s<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">future. Now these were pre-pandemic survey results from 2019, but they are still<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">illustrative.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">The World Economic Forum in their Global Social Mobility Index, finds that Australians\u2019<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">social mobility is high. Pre-COVID, our employment levels were also high and, importantly,<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">there was little difference in the unemployment rate between new arrivals to our shores<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">and those born here, whereas across the OECD, there was an average 2.9 percent gap<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">between the migrant and non-migrant unemployment rate. In the European Union it was a<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">4.1 percentage point gap.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Migrants create more small businesses in Australia proportionately than non-migrants,<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">despite 83 percent of migrant business owners not owning a business before coming here.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">What all this data shows is that regardless of where you come from, everyone in Australia<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">has the opportunity to \u2018have a go\u2019 and succeed.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">As the Prime Minister has said, \u2018if you have a go, you\u2019ll get a go\u2019 in Australia.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">People aren\u2019t excluded. Individuals such as Hieu Van Le are living examples of this: a person<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">arriving as a refugee from Vietnam is now the Governor of South Australia.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Our social cohesion is particularly remarkable given the size and diversity of our migrant<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">intake. There are people from every single country on earth living here. Almost 30 percent<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">of us were born overseas and a further 21 percent have at least one migrant parent. The<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">United States, known as the \u201cgreat melting pot\u201d, has just 13 percent born overseas.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Further, we have not seen the extent of religious or ethnic violence experienced in some<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">other countries. We\u2019ve actually seen quite the opposite, and this has never been more on<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">display than during the bushfires and the COVID pandemic where multicultural communities<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">have stood up to support their fellow Australians.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">When you see Buddhist monks providing free massages to weary fire-fighters, Muslim<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">builders putting on barbeques for bushfire survivors, Irish truck drivers delivering hundreds<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">of thousands of litres of water, and Sikhs cooking and delivering curries to Melbourne\u2019s<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">public housing estates during the COVID lockdown, you know we have something special in<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">this nation.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">We have fought hard to build and maintain our social cohesion. Of course, we began<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">European settlement without the class structures that are present in other countries. And<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">egalitarianism, articulated through mateship and the \u2018fair go\u2019, have permeated our society.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">In recent decades, our policy of multiculturalism based on integration (as opposed to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">assimilation or separatism) has also served us well. <\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">The Government has put policies in place to support people to integrate, including funding a<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">$71 million package of initiatives to ensure that what we share and what brings us together<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">is always stronger and more important than any differences.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">In the work my department does, we have supported measures through the Fostering<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Integration Grants that have enabled new arrivals to become part of and contribute to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Australia\u2019s economic and social development; we have built interfaith and multicultural<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">understanding through sport, in classrooms, cultural institutions and through communitydriven programs and outreach; and we\u2019ve promoted resilience against harmful and divisive<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">messages, particularly those that promote violence.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">John Howard when speaking here at the National Press Club in 2006 said that:<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">\u201cAustralia\u2019s crowning achievement, borne of its egalitarian tradition, is its social<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">cohesion. No country has absorbed as many people from as many nations and as<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">many cultures as Australia and done it so well. The strength of a culturally diverse<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">community, united by an overriding and unifying commitment to Australia, is one of<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">our greatest achievements and one of our great national assets.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">He was right back then, and the evidence suggests that this remains one of \u201cour great<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">national assets\u201d.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Challenges to our cohesion<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">While we should be proud of what we have collectively achieved, we cannot be complacent.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">There are factors today, putting strain on our cohesion that weren\u2019t there 14 years ago,<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">when John Howard made those comments, or even six months ago in some cases.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">So, far from being complacent, it means we need to redouble our efforts.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Consider four big newer or enhanced challenges we face today.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">First, COVID itself.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">John Ferguson from The Australian newspaper wrote earlier this month that the Stage 4<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">lockdown restrictions in Melbourne \u201cwill crudely tear the state\u2019s social fabric\u201d. I am not as<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">pessimistic as he is, but there is no doubt that the impact will be devastating for many and<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">challenge us all in ways previously unseen.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Even in other states, everyday community activities which have traditionally been so<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">important at holding communities together are not as vibrant as they once were, or they<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">are still restricted: activities like community and national sport, church and worship<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">attendance, meetings or gatherings at the local RSL or pub, the local Rotary or Lions<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">meeting, or scouts. Even office working life has changed dramatically, with less physical<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">interaction with our colleagues. Technology can only do so much to make up for this lack of<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">physical community.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Most concerning, however, is the impact of COVID on jobs. Compared to other countries,<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">our economy is robust and holding up, but Treasury is still forecasting the COVID effective <\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">unemployment rate to rise to more than 13 percent in the September quarter. This will be<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">devastating for so many.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Moreover we know that when unemployment rises, sentiment towards migrants can<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">deteriorate. We have already seen some disgraceful racist attacks against Asian Australians<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">\u2013 actions that have no place in the country. We must always guard against such behaviour<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">and call out racist acts wherever they occur. The vast majority of Australians would agree<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">100% with this sentiment.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Second, foreign interference.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Foreign interference in Australia is at an unprecedented high. As Director-General of<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Security, Mike Burgess bluntly put it earlier this year: \u201cThe level of threat is higher now than<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">it was at the height of the cold war.\u201d<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Foreign actors have multiple objectives, but one is to seek to grow division in our society by<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">pushing people away from Australia and placing their loyalties elsewhere. They seek to sow<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">distrust in government and institutions.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Every sector of our community is a potential target, including parliamentarians, their staff,<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">and all levels of government, the media, opinion makers, business leaders, and the<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">university community.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">I am particularly concerned about the reach of some foreign actors into our multicultural<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">communities. Members of our diverse communities have been both victims of interference<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">and used as vectors to engage in foreign interference. Despite now being proud Australians,<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">some communities are still seen by their former home countries as \u201ctheir diaspora\u201d \u2013 to be<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">harassed or exploited to further the national cause.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Some who criticise their former country are silenced through threats and intimidation,<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">including to family members back in their country of heritage. Others are persuaded or<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">forced to monitor or harass members of their own community who may hold views contrary<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">to those of the governing regimes in their former countries.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Further, malign information or propaganda can be spread through multicultural media,<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">including foreign language media controlled or funded by state players. This can be<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">particularly influential if local residents\u2019 English is poor and hence they are more reliant on<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">foreign language sources.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">The third challenge is the increasing number of those who cannot speak English. In 2006,<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">about 560,000 residents did not speak English well or at all. By 2016, at the last Census, it<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">was 820,000. Based on those trends, it is probably close to a million by now \u2013 with about<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">half of those being of working age.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Having poor or non-existent English skills is a huge disadvantage to anyone in Australia<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">because of the barriers it places in gaining employment and fully integrating into Australian<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">life. Indeed, there is no other factor that I have seen which has such a strong correlation<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">with employment. Only 13 per cent of those with no English skills are in work compared to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">62 per cent of those who speak English well. <\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">And when the number of people with poor English skills is high, our national cohesion is also<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">affected. How can we fully connect together without a common language? How can<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">everyone fully and comprehensively participate in our democracy?<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">We have seen this through the pandemic where it has been difficult to communicate with<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">all Australians through the mainstream channels. During this time, we have significantly<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">increased our engagement with community leaders and organisations. Ministerial<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">engagement has been as high as ever during these COVID restrictions, with technology<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">being a major driver in these engagements \u2013 providing a regular connection in bringing<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">community leaders together from around Australia.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Since March there has been more than 6,700 engagements with key multicultural groups<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">and community leaders. And whilst we have produced over 4,600 materials translated in 63<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">languages to accommodate this, the challenge in engaging with all Australians remains.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">This is not to blame anyone whose English language proficiency is poor, but clearly full<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">participation in the community is difficult when there are language barriers.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Without English language skills, migrants are less likely to get a job, less likely to integrate,<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">and less likely to participate in our democracy.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Moreover, living in Australia does not guarantee that English will be acquired. Based on<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">census data, it is estimated that around half of the overseas-born who arrived with no<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">English still cannot speak English well, or at all, after 15 years of residency.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Whilst a 2019 ABS survey showed that the numbers may have slightly improved, there still<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">remains a significant challenge for us to improve this overall trend. We particularly need to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">get better results from our $1 billion Adult Migrant English Program (which I will come to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">later).<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Finally, technology.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">During John Howard\u2019s address here in 2006, the iPhone hadn\u2019t even been brought to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">market. It was still a time when the vast majority of Australians read a daily newspaper that<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">largely competed for the middle ground. They, and the nightly news, set the agenda of what<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">was considered to be the common challenges facing our nation.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Today, with technology and media disintermediation, people (and particularly younger<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">people) are increasingly living in online echo chambers with their news content filtered,<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">curated and personalised to reflect their own world view. A person with left-wing views may<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">never come across any content written or said by conservatives, and vice versa.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">These echo chambers are particularly dangerous when they bring together those advocating<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">violent extremism or targeting a minority. Online algorithms can then direct them to more<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">hateful, violent, and divisive content and other like-minded individuals, many of them<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">anonymous.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Technology has also been a key factor in allowing fake and malign information to be spread<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">quickly, easily and widely. <\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Former Chief Rabbi of the Commonwealth, Lord Jonathan Sacks, who has written<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">extensively on this topic, also notes that with technology almost any clash in the world can<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">be imported into a conflict locally. \u201cWhat might, twenty years ago, have been a local<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">problem dealt with locally\u2026.can now set off a series of protests [on the other side of the<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">world] with a ferocity beyond anyone\u2019s power to control. \u2026The result is serious and the<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">danger may get worse.\u201d<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Don\u2019t get me wrong. I am not making an argument against technology. It can be brilliant at<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">joining people up and creating digital communities (and we have seen this in spades during<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">the COVID restrictions). But it also has immense power to divide individuals and<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">communities, as we have already seen.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">There are other challenges to our cohesion that remain, such as Islamic extremism and<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">other forms of extremism and radicalisation. But I raise these four challenges: COVID,<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">foreign interference, English language capability, and technology, because they present new<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">threats to our social cohesion which we must be alert to and make additional efforts to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">address.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Maintaining our social cohesion<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">When I think about Australia, I am an optimist.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">We are a robust, resilient people and as I mentioned at the beginning of my remarks, we<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">start from an enviable position.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Our social fabric is strong with hundreds of thousands of volunteer and community groups<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">which bring people together.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Moreover, we have already done so much to counter some of our new challenges directly.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">For example, the work that the Federal and State Governments have done, with community<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">support, to tackle COVID means that we are amongst the best positioned in the world. Our<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">economic supports have kept the unemployment rate five percentage points lower than it<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">would otherwise be. Job creation is now an even more critical mission of the Government.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Outside of Victoria, some states and territories are easing restrictions on social gatherings to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">allow those community groups to flourish again, along with things that foster social<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">cohesion \u2013 like sport, community gatherings and entertainment. It is these \u201clittle platoons\u201d<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">(as Edmund Burke called them) that are possibly the most important thing of all in binding<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">us together. Victoria will hopefully soon follow and these platoons can once again flourish in<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">our community.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">On foreign interference, so much work has been done and will continue to be done. The<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Government has passed new laws and established the office of the National Counter<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Foreign Interference Coordinator. We\u2019ve established the ASIO-led multi-agency Counter<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Foreign Interference Taskforce and developed guidelines with universities to counter<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">foreign interference in the tertiary education sector.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">And we are also tackling technology-based challenges. Agencies are working closely with<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">digital industry to identify and quickly seek removal of malign information, vile racist<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">content, and exploitative material. The Minister for Communications and the Minister for <\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Home Affairs continue their work in this area \u2013 towards ensuring a safer, more open and<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">secure internet.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">As I mentioned earlier, the Government has also significantly increased its engagement with<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">multicultural communities, providing reassurance, assistance and information and<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">conveying feedback to Government.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">New measures to enhance social cohesion<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Today, I announce new measures to further the work of keeping Australians together as<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">these new challenges emerge.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">To start, we will be initiating a renewed push on the most important element which binds us<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">together more than anything else: our liberal democratic values.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Our shared values \u2013 of democracy, a commitment to the rule of law, freedom of speech and<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">association, mutual respect, equality of opportunity and individual responsibility \u2013 are the<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">foundations of our modern society, as is the value that we place on a \u2018fair go\u2019 for all.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">These values have held us together over the decades and have underpinned the freedom<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">and prosperity that has made our nation so attractive for millions of migrants to seek to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">come here.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Our values defend us against challenges to our social cohesion.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Defending and promoting our values is a task for all of us, but the government also has a<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">special responsibility in this area.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">With this in mind, we will develop a broader campaign articulating our national identity, our<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">multicultural success, and the Australian values which underpin our nation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">We will also place a greater emphasis on Australian citizenship, encouraging people to take<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">it up and educating people about what it means to declare one\u2019s loyalty to our nation and<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">its people. Over the last 12 months, we have made particular effort to encourage and<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">facilitate citizenship with a record 200,000 becoming Aussies, and we need to maintain this<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">momentum.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">I am announcing today that we will be updating the Australian citizenship test and this will<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">include new questions on Australian values. I will have more to say on this in coming weeks,<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">but the stronger focus on Australian values in citizenship testing will be an important part of<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">helping protect our social cohesion into the future.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Australian citizenship is both a privilege and a responsibility, and it should be granted to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">those who support our values, respect our laws, and want to contribute to Australia\u2019s<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">future. We should ensure that those who come here and those who want to settle here<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">clearly understand \u2013 and are willing to commit to \u2013 the shared common values that unite us<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">all as Australians.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">The Government will also be updating the Australian Values Statement \u2013 something that is <\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">signed by temporary and permanent migrants as well as citizenship applicants. This will <\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">make the Statement more meaningful so that it reflects the importance we place on the<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">values that define and shape our country and culture.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">As well as these initiatives, the Government is making substantial changes to our Adult<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Migrant English Program (AMEP) so that English capability is more widespread.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">This is a billion dollar program, but it is presently not having a sufficient impact. It currently<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">provides migrants 510 hours of free language tuition (with a very small number eligible for<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">up to 1090 hours), but, on average, people only complete 300 hours of classes and only 21<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">percent leave with a functional level of English.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">This is not good enough.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">The current program is mostly classroom-based and doesn\u2019t provide the flexibility needed<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">for people working or with caring responsibilities, and doesn\u2019t sufficiently take advantage of<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">the massive opportunities from Ed-Tech. Moreover, once you have been here for five years,<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">a person becomes ineligible to take further classes. In many cases, 510 hours is also<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">insufficient, particularly for those whose native language is not a European language, which<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">is many of the major groups of our new migrants today.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Hence, the Government will lift the cap on class hours and remove the time limits. From<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">today, this means that any permanent resident or citizen who doesn\u2019t yet have functional<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">English \u2013 that is, the basic language skills to enable participation in society \u2013 will be able to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">attend classes free of charge until they acquire this language capability.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">I am encouraging those who fit this description to take up this opportunity. Use this time to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">become better equipped in learning English.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Further, once we pass legislation, people will also be able to continue to undertake classes<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">until they reach vocational level English.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">We will work closely with the English language providers and the industry, including EdTech, to ensure these reforms generate the improvements we need and expect. I want to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">see better results from the providers, starting now.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">The Government will also boost our successful Community Liaison Officer network to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">include more officers with dual language skills \u2013 including in Arabic, Mandarin, Cantonese<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">and Vietnamese \u2013 to enhance our engagement with communities at a grassroots level. This<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">will help us to better understand issues in these communities and better ensure they are<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">receiving Government information and support. We started this network when I was last<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Minister for Multicultural Affairs and it has been effective in reaching out to communities.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">We will now go further.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Finally, there will be further investment to understand and track our social cohesion in a<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">more sophisticated manner. This will include a focused research program designed to better<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">understand community sentiment towards social cohesion. For example, we will partner<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">with the Scanlon Foundation Research Institute to better harness their research to inform<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">our social cohesion policy-making and program delivery and allow an ongoing public<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">discussion about this area. <\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">These initiatives will reinforce our values, strengthen our common language and keep us<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">further united.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">The goal of social cohesion is one for all of us to progress and to take action where we can<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">at an individual and community level.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">This is particularly important now during these very tough times \u2013 certainly for those in<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Victoria.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">For Victorians who endured Lockdown 1.0, and now Lockdown 2.0 with an added curfew,<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">the slogan that somehow \u2018staying apart helps keep us together\u2019 has basically turned the<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">notion of social cohesion and community on its head.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Of course, no one wants to lock people in their homes. Perhaps we need to think longer<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">term, with the hope that the silver lining in all of this might be a stronger community at the<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">other end. For instance, once restrictions ease more broadly, what if we all commit to<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">joining a new community group, or a Rotary or Lions club; or commit to introducing<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">ourselves to a neighbour or a new arrival in the community; or commit to a volunteering<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">pursuit; or commit to assisting the vulnerable or lonely. Whilst we will eventually get<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">through this terrible period, wouldn\u2019t it be good to strengthen our social cohesion when we<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">do? To build on the great community support we saw in the first lockdown.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Conclusion<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">2020 has already shown us the challenges and uncertainty we face \u2013 from bushfires and<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">floods, a global pandemic, sophisticated cyber-attacks and foreign interference. All of this<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">has occurred against a backdrop of a more complex geo-political environment in our region.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">But when we look around the world, we are in an enviable position.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Few nations could claim to enjoy the peaceful unity that characterises Australia\u2019s<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">multicultural society, and our challenge today is to ensure we remain one of the most<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">successful multicultural societies in the world.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">The government is stepping up to play its part.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">It is my hope that the community will continue to step up and do what Australians do so<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">well \u2013 looking after each other to build an even stronger Australia.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">Thank you.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\">[End] <\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) community update 31 August 2020 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) community\u00a0update Dear Community Representatives, thank you again for your engagement and efforts to support your communities through this time. \u00a0 We know that there is a lot of information available about COVID-19 and its impacts on the Australian community.\u00a0 We endeavour to keep you [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":26399,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"aside","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[4422,29302,6492,29303],"class_list":{"0":"post-49452","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-aside","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-articles","8":"tag-alan-tudge","9":"tag-covid-19-coronavirus-updates","10":"tag-scott-morrison","11":"tag-the-australian-cyber-security-centre","12":"post_format-post-format-aside"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v25.7.1 (Yoast SEO v25.9) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) community update 31 August 2020<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Dear Community Representatives, thank you again for your engagement and efforts to support your communities through this time. \u00a0\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" 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