Summarised by Centrist
Immigration Minister Erica Stanford has said New Zealand will have to rely on migration because the country is not having enough children.
The admission came during a noisy question time exchange, after Labour’s Phil Twyford asked whether National supported or opposed immigration-fuelled population growth.
Stanford replied: “We are not producing enough babies in this country to ensure that we have a stable or even growing population. We are going to rely on migration.”
She said the issue was “very serious”, pointing to the risk of a declining population. New Zealand’s current birth rate is 1.6 children per woman, well below the replacement rate of 2.1.
The debate also exposed tension inside the coalition’s immigration messaging.
Twyford contrasted Christopher Luxon’s comment that New Zealand would “really need more immigration” with Winston Peters repeatedly saying the opposite.
