Speaking to SBS Punjabi at a media conference in Melbourne earlier this week, the newly instated Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs David Coleman said, 'there are certain values that people must conform to before becoming an Australian citizen. This includes believing in democracy, believing in the rule of law, and an independent court system. So that's something I'm looking at, at what it means to be an Australian."
On the matter of testing new migrants for English competency, Mr Coleman said, "That is just common sense. If someone has English, that will be of benefit for them to live a better life in Australia - for participating better at school, sporting clubs, shopping and other things in daily life. So having a an appropriate level of English is important and I'm looking at that closely."
"The other thing is, people can only apply for citizenship after having lived in Australia for at least four years. So it's entirely appropriate to expect a certain level of English - that would be of benefit to the applicant, as well as the community."
Further to this, Mr Coleman spoke about the "room for improvement" in the regional settlement program, without giving too many specifics.
On the matter of the Indian community's long standing demand to facilitate a long-term parental visa, so that migrants can invite their parents to stay with them in Australia for an extended period of time, Mr Coleman was unable to give an assurance of when and how that visa maybe made available.
