World media mogul praises Aussie immigration system

Media mogul, Rupert Murdoch, has paid tribute to Australia’s richest man, Hungarian born Frank Lowy AC.

The changes, effective from 1 January, will ensure that the Skilled Migration program is driven by the needs of industry and targets those skills in critical need.

At a tribute dinner for Mr. Lowy, Murdoch urged the Australian government to maintain its current levels of immigration.

Murdoch says that Lowy's achievements are proof that Australian immigration is key to the success of the nation. He argued that the future of Australia is dependent on keeping the migrant flow strong and building Australia to be a nation built on attracting skills from overseas.

"In my recent Boyer Lectures I spoke of the importance to Australia’s future of a liberal immigration system," Mr. Murdoch said.

"Few other Australians embody the breadth of achievement or the contribution to Australia’s prosperity made by immigrants in this country than Frank Lowy."

Mr. Lowy is the founder of the now international business Westfield shopping centres. He is also Chairman and benefactor of the Football Federation of Australia, the power behind Australia’s A-League soccer.

Critics of the government’s stance on immigration had recently claimed that migration levels should be cut, given the current economic climate.

Currently, the government has not yet decided on the 2009-10 Australian skilled migration quota, but suggest that they would maintain the record 133,000 skilled visas as a ceiling. Despite current global financial issues, Australia needs to continue attracting large numbers of skilled workers to Australia to plug the skills gaps and build the Australian economy.