Alex Thomas, Host: "We stand ready to provide consular assistance", something that's very much in the wheelhouse of Assistant Foreign Affairs Minister Matt Thistlethwaite. He joins us live now. Minister, thanks so much for your time on what is a really depressing day in terms of the horrible images we're seeing out of Nepal today.
Matt Thistlethwaite, Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs: Good morning, Alex. Yes, it's quite shocking, those images from the flooding and landslide in Nepal and Tibet, China. We extend our deepest sympathies to those that are affected by these terrifying events. It's an area that's quite popular in the Himalayas for pilgrims, for Hindu pilgrims to visit, particularly at this time of the year. And we understand that there may be a number of Australians who are part of those tours to that region. And we're working as quickly as we can to confirm the Australians that may be in the region and to liaise with their families. But if anyone has any questions or they're concerned, we're encouraging people to call Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade on 1300 555 135 or if you are overseas 612 6261 3305.
Thomas: Yeah, it looks like dozens of Australians could be caught up in this, but clearly a very fluid situation, horrific damage, so communication must be tough. Do you know when you will know a more exact figure?
Assistant Minister: Yeah, we have DFAT consular people in both China and Nepal that are working as hard as they possibly can to confirm if there are any Australians in the vicinity, if they've been affected, and to get the best information possible about what they should do and how to contact family and friends. We'll provide regular updates as we receive that information from our Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade officials on the ground. People, if they want to monitor the situation, should go to the Smartraveller website, where there'll be regular updates that are posted as soon as they become available to government officials.
Thomas: Minister, while I've got you, I was wondering if you had any comments on reports on the front of the Australian newspaper today about the Government's future migration plans, a possible tightening of restrictions, particularly on foreign students. You also probably heard Pete Stefanovic talking at the bush summit there a little bit earlier about how hard it is to get this balance right, you know, when you got workers that are needed in certain sectors?
Assistant Minister: Yes. Obviously, migration plays a big part of ensuring that farmers in particular and rural and regional industry have the necessary labour to run their businesses and to grow their businesses. And we want to continue to support that. We budget each year for a number of migrants to come to Australia, both on a temporary and a permanent basis, and we aim to meet those commitments in the Budget for net overseas migration and permanent migration. And we're putting in place measures to make sure that we meet those Budget commitments. There's a discussion that's occurring at the moment, moment in Cabinet regarding policy and how we achieve those numbers. But we, of course, always consult. I had meetings yesterday with industry regarding any proposed changes, how they will affect industry, and we want to make sure that businesses can continue to run in Australia and continue to grow. And it's about getting the balance right.
Thomas: Yeah. Assistant Foreign Affairs Minister Matt Thistlethwaite, thank you for your time on News24 for this morning.
Assistant Minister: Thank you.