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“That national security law constitutes a fundamental change of circumstances in respect to our extradition agreement with Hong Kong. And so Australia today has taken steps to suspend our extradition agreement.” Australian Prime Minister @ScottMorrisonMP #auspol @SBSNews
“We have formally notified Hong Kong and advised the Chinese authorities” - PM @ScottMorrisonMP #auspol @SBSNews
“For skilled and graduate visa holders, we will be extending visas by five years from today, with a pathway to permanent residency at the end of those five years” - PM @ScottMorrisonMP #auspol @SBSNews
“And we will also provide a 5-year visa with a pathway to permanent residency for future Hong Kong applicants for temporary skilled visas, subject to meeting an updated skills list and appropriate marking testing.” PM @ScottMorrisonMP #auspol @SBSNews
“I want to stress that we are not expecting large numbers of applicants in any time soon. What we have in place is the normal application mechanisms for these visas.” PM @ScottMorrisonMP #auspol @SBSNews
“Current and future students from Hong Kong will be eligible for a 5-year temporary graduate visa on the successful conclusion of their studies, and that will come with a pathway for permanent residency” @AlanTudgeMP #auspol @SBSNews
“In relation to temporary skilled visas, current temporary skilled visa holders from Hong Kong, who are in Australia at the moment, will be eligible for an additional five years in Australia, with a pathway to permanent residency at the end of that period” @AlanTudgeMP #auspol
“Future Hong Kong applicants for temporary skilled visas will also be eligible for a 5-year visa, provided they meet existing criteria. Now, that is that you must fit with one of the skills shortage criteria, and that list will be updated shortly.” @AlanTudgeMP #auspol @SBSNews
“And it's going to be a significantly reduced list compared to what it is today” @AlanTudgeMP #auspol @SBSNews
“We will be developing new incentives for export-oriented Hong Kong-based businesses to relocate to Australia. And with these economic incentives will also be visa pathways to permanent residency.” @AlanTudgeMP #auspol @SBSNews
“We know that many individuals now might be looking elsewhere, because they do want to be in a freer country, they want to be in a democratic country, and we want to make it attractive for that super talent to consider Australia, and that's what these measures do.” @AlanTudgeMP
PM @ScottMorrisonMP says it is the the view of Australia “and many countries” that China’s national security laws “undermines the One Country, Two Systems framework and Hong Kong's own basic law and the high degree of autonomy guaranteed in the Sino-British Joint Declaration”
“This country has never seen a level of income support provided by a federal government like they're seeing now. And we will continue to provide that.“ PM @ScottMorrisonMP #auspol @SBSNews
“The UK has a very special relationship with Hong Kong and a very special set of responsibilities” Australian PM @ScottMorrisonMP “And they're talking about numbers which are not in contemplation in Australia” #auspol @SBSNews
“In a typical financial year, we would have about 4,000 people from Hong Kong who would arrive, and about 3,000 of those would be students, and about a thousand who would be in the temporary skilled or graduate visa categories” @AlanTudgeMP adds #auspol @SBSNews
Do you expect any countermeasures from #China that might make it difficult for those people to come to #Australia to take up that offer? “I don't. But if that were to occur, that would be very disappointing.” PM @ScottMorrisonMP #auspol @SBSNews
