An election series in which a panel of readers answers questions on the big issues. The panel of 120 eligible voters has been selected by the research company Nielsen to reflect the age, gender and regional spread of the voting-age population.
KEY POINTS:
Immigration policy should not let in so many people just because a family member is in New Zealand, many voters believe.
The Herald Voters Panel was asked a number of questions on immigration this week and though there was little opposition to the overall level and the ethnic mix, nearly half were unhappy with the numbers admitted on grounds of family reunification.
About 30 per cent of immigrants are family sponsored, while 60 per cent are admitted on business and skills grounds and 10 per cent on humanitarian grounds.
Of the 96 panellists who responded, 45 per cent were unhappy with the criteria and the same proportion were content.
Of the unhappy ones, nearly all wanted fewer family admissions.
"People should not be allowed to bring elderly family members to New Zealand, it is such a burden on the health system," said one.
And another: "When there is buoyancy and growth we can afford family reunification but the immigrant needs to show independence first."
A third said the criteria should be revised "so that we don't get one unqualified person then lots of unskilled relatives who bring in more unskilled relatives".
Many said a better balance would be 70-80 per cent business and skills, 10-15 per cent family and 5-10 per cent humanitarian.
But on the overall level of immigration they seem broadly content. Forty of the 96 believe the present level is about right, 26 think too many people are coming in, 15 want more and 15 had no view.
Most of those supporting the present immigration rate cite skills shortages and the need to replace the numbers emigrating. Several said migrants were integrating well and they saw no racial issues. However, a failure to integrate or speak English was cited by many of the 26 who thought the level too high.
Those who wanted more immigrants gave a range of reasons, including skill shortages, the need for an economic stimulant and the ability of a larger population to support better infrastructure.
Ethnically, Britain supplied the largest number of last year's immigrants (26 per cent) followed by China (12 per cent) and India (9 per cent). That mix was approved by the largest number on the voters panel though many wanted more British or fewer Asians.
