Is there anything about the Government’s free trade deal with India that anyone likes?

The prime minister and the trade minister love it. Winston Peters doesn’t. And it seems Labour leader Chris Hipkins is coming around to thinking that he doesn’t like it, either.

He’s concerned about the prospect of an unlimited number of Indian students being allowed to come here and work and the impact that could have on the job market.

Which the trade minister is poo-pooing. Because we don’t actually have any limits on the number of students who can come here from anywhere. Not just India.

But I think we should.

I know the trade minister will tell us until he’s blue in the face that this is a trade deal - not an immigration deal. But he’s pushing that one uphill with the likes of Winston Peters, who is picking up on the immigration side of it because there is no shortage of people who love to complain about foreigners “taking over”.

Do you really think NZ First would be making as much of a noise if this was a deal with the UK or the US? I don’t think so. 

So they’re just tapping into some good old-fashioned xenophobia.

That said - since the government announced the deal just before Christmas - whenever I’ve been speaking with young people especially about it, I’ve been surprised how strongly some of them feel about students coming here from other countries.  

And how many of them think there should be limits. Which I agree with, for several reasons.

First of all, students don’t come here with any skills. They come here to get skilled. I know they spend money and it’s great for the tertiary sector because they pay higher fees being international students. But they don’t come here and fill the workforce skill shortages we’re dealing with. 

Secondly, the more students from overseas, the higher the demand for accommodation. Which means student rents going skyward.

What’s more, if we have no limits on the number of students coming here, then that increases the risk of students getting ripped off by employers. It also makes it tougher for domestic students to find the work they need to pay for their studies.

But what do you think?

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