Opposition leader Peter Dutton has immigration numbers squarely in his sights. Lower the number of immigrants in this country, he has said, and we will see an improvement with all sorts of social challenges. This won’t just help fix our dire housing crisis. But it will also help people get in to see a GP, and finally gain a spot for their child at kindergarten.

His policy was the cornerstone of his budget reply speech, two weeks ago. But since then, his speech - and the coalition - have come under fire. For promoting a populist idea that will fail to address these struggles. And, even worse, possibly fueling racist sentiment.

Today, columnist Jacqueline Maley on the Coalition’s cornerstone policy, which it plans to take to the next election. 

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