Australia is abandoning a six-decade consensus favoring immigration, risking slower growth and faster inflation in a nation short of workers to help meet China’s demand for its commodities.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard is pushing reduced population gains to lure voters in suburban districts she needs to win Aug. 21 elections, an appeal to neighborhoods faced with pressure on road systems and housing. Since taking office last month, she’s dropped her predecessor’s endorsement of a “Big Australia” policy that envisioned a surge of more than 50 percent in citizens in the coming four decades.
The consequence of diminished immigration may be a hit of almost half a percentage point to the... Full Story
