Luke Malpass is Stuff’s political editor.
OPINION: There are times in politics when you realize that something that seemed almost impossible a while ago is about to become a reality. Covid brought about many of these moments – closed borders, lockdowns, masks everywhere.
But for those things that are ultimately beyond a government’s control, it can be much harder to make progress.
Figuring out citizenship rights and taking them on a new path could be a big moment for Jacinda Ardern.
The Prime Minister’s trip to Australia turned out to be more successful than anyone could have imagined.
In 2016, John Key struck a deal that would allow Kiwis to apply for citizenship after living in Australia for five years. This was on the same basis as anyone wishing to become an Australian citizen.
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But the premise of the deal announced in Sydney on Friday are fundamentally different. Ardern and new Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese agreed in principle to end the predicament of people as permanent temporary residents, which is what the current arrangements on both sides of the Tasman are all about. In particular, obtaining Australian citizenship is expensive, difficult and far from certain.
It goes against the whole thrust of the Treaty for Closer Economic Relations, which turns 40 next year. While the free movement of labor has been encouraged, the rights formerly associated with movement have declined.
Currently, Australians can more or less automatically become New Zealand citizens after living in New Zealand for five years. All they have to do is pass a character test (that they have not been in trouble with the law; speeding fines are in order) and a language test (they speak basic English) and have lived in New Zealand for at least eight months of each of those five years.
The goal for New Zealand, while it’s too early to say where it will land, will be to apply something similar to both sides of the Tasman. Currently Australians have the right to become Kiwi citizens after five years, while New Zealanders have the right to only apply on the same basis as any other migrant.
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Roundtables: Members of the governments of Australia and New Zealand meet in Sydney on Friday.
For Australians it is rights based, for Kiwis it is applicable.
Albanian comments about 501 deportees were just as remarkable. He almost got into the conversation that Australia would now do what New Zealand has been asking for years: treat New Zealanders who are in fact Australians like, well, Australians.
Australia would still deport people where necessary, he said — something New Zealand has never asked it not to do.
The Australian journalists in attendance were stunned by Albanians casually saying that Australia would now treat the issues of 501s and citizenship through the lens of friendship and common sense. There will be no ministers talking about “taking out the trash” of this Australian Labor government.
In fact, the whole trip showed how toxic the relationship had become on some level. For nearly two decades Australian politicians have done nothing for New Zealanders unless it is for some reason in their limited political interest. In fact, the previous Abbott/Turnbull/Morrison administrations with 501s clearly decided there was more benefit in making a show of getting rid of all these criminals.
Albanian’s attitude, and that of his new ministers, seemed to carry an unspoken assumption that ‘we’re not going to act like jerks’. That’s clearly how they think Morrison’s government has behaved – unsurprisingly they come from the other side of politics. Albanian was candid and explicit about the need to “reset” the relationship and that it started Friday.
This is an important victory for Ardern. Domestically, it will help as the wave of exported crime is now likely to slow down. She’s been lobbying this issue for years, and the mix of personal chemistry, labor partners, and a clean broom coming in have all resulted in meaningful changes being made against the actual data. The 501 issue is now clearly an explicit commitment from the Prime Minister of Albanians.
No one realistically thought that would happen on Friday.
Getting these changes is a great start to the new relationship at the highest level and a personal victory for Ardern. Of course, the proof will be in the pudding on Anzac Day 2023, but it seems very likely that there will be some sort of harmonized, reciprocal regime where citizenship requirements are the same on both sides of the Tasman.
Because this is political, there is, of course, a potential political advantage for Albanians and Labor that is not just seen as good. If a whole bunch of Kiwis were to become citizens, that could bring in two or three extra seats in the Federal Parliament, most likely in Queensland, and Labor would most likely win seats. It’s nice when there’s a political advantage to doing the right thing.
Other things came out of the meeting. There will now be annual and more formalized meetings between the trans-Tasman economy ministers, including climate change ministers, an issue the Albanians clearly labeled as economic.
On the Pacific, New Zealand and Australia also sing from the same song sheet, and Australian Foreign Secretary Penny Wong has been sent across the region to rebuild relations. Albanian spoke on Friday about how, when I first hit the phone to Pacific leaders, there was “a sense of relief that the Labor government I lead is now part of the action when it comes to climate change” .
In addition, new treasurer Jim Chalmers plans to provide a mini welfare budget later this year, which he has discussed with New Zealand Chancellor of the Exchequer, Grant Robertson.
I wrote on Friday about research done by NZ story on Australian attitudes to New Zealand, particularly around leadership on climate and indigenous issues.
We have seen the political manifestation of that changed attitude in recent days. Research by the Lowy Institute has found that the last Australian government simply fell out of step with public opinion, especially on climate change.
None of this should be Pollyanna-esque – in time there will be things about which the two countries will disagree.
But a new course has been set and it is recognized that things need to be improved. That’s a pretty good start.