In the latest official photograph of Anthony Albanese‘s desk, a book sits prominently on his shelf called ‘Australia’s Pivot to India‘.
Written by his high-flying Cabinet Secretary Andrew Charlton, the 2023 release argues that deepening ties between Australia and India is a ‘national imperative,’ highlighting the economic, cultural and political influence of the country’s fast-growing diaspora.
‘India’s rise will also change Australia,’ Dr Charlton, who sold his advisory firm to Accenture in 2020 for a reported $35 million, predicted.
‘Today the Indian diaspora has blossomed into an extraordinary community, numbering more than one million Australians – nearly one in twenty-five Australians has Indian heritage.
‘And Indian Australians are by far the fastest growing ethnic group. The Indian diaspora is making an enormous contribution to Australia and helping to cultivate a fruitful relationship with one of the world’s emerging superpowers.’
But not every body feels the same way.
The nationwide anti-immigration rallies last weekend were marred by neo-Nazis and demonstrators espousing anti-Indian racism, with one flyer claiming that increased Indian immigration was about ‘replacement, plain and simple’.
Anne Aly, the minister for multicultural affairs, revealed she had spoken to members of the Indian-Australian community in the aftermath who claimed ‘they did not feel safe and they did not feel secure’.
Albanese featured his Cabinet Secretary Andrew Charlton’s 2023 book Australia’s Pivot to India on his cabinet in his second office photo shoot (pictured behind his left arm)
The book sits on a prime spot on Mr Albanese’s bookshelf – next to a photo of the Prime MInister’s dog Toto and son Nathan
‘I want to say to Indian Australians, this is our message: you do not have to justify your belonging in this country,’ she told Question Time.
‘We know you, we value you, we thank you for everything you have contributed to Australia ‘
Yet, the situation was inflamed on Thursday when Senator Jacinta Price suggested – falsely – that Labor was bringing in migrants ‘from particular countries over others’ to secure votes, citing India as an example.
Senator Price’s subsequent doubling down – despite the Opposition’s desperate attempts to clarify her statements – have only served to damage the Coalition’s relationship with the Indian community.
The pivot
Dr Charlton’s book also examines voting patterns among Indian Australians, citing a Carnegie Endowment survey which found 43 per cent identified with Labor, compared to 26 per cent for the Coalition.
‘Traditionally, many migrants tended to support Labor, partly because Labor seemed to be on the side of diversity and was naturally stronger in the outer suburbs where many migrants settled,’ Dr Charlton wrote.
He added that ‘modern Australia provides more space for migrants to integrate without assimilation,’ creating ‘more authentic hyphenated identities’.
Albanese endorsed the book and appeared at its launch, cracking a joke about how he features on the cover next to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, both men smiling and waving.
The Albanese government has deepened Australia’s ties with India, including by improving mutual recognition of qualifications and the international student intake. Albanese is pictured with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi
‘I’m very pleased to be here to launch Andrew Charlton’s new book. To be fair, he did put me on the cover. But the inside is even better,’ Albanese quipped.
In recent weeks, however, Albanese has faced criticism over unfounded claims that Labor is bringing more Indian migrants to Australia to shore up votes from what some describe as a Labor-friendly group.
In its first term, the Albanese government signed a migration and mobility agreement with India to increase migration flows between the two countries.
Earlier this month, Labor also announced it would raise next year’s intake of international students by 25,000, with Indians making up the second-largest cohort.
The move, combined with a relaxation of English-language requirements, has been welcomed by Indian migration agents and student groups.
Voting patterns
But critics argue the policy could give Labor an electoral advantage, given the community’s voting record.
According to Redbridge pollster Kos Samaras, up to 85 per cent of Australia’s Indian community voted Labor at the last federal election.
Citing this data, MacroBusiness chief economist Leith van Onselen wrote that Labor has a ‘direct incentive to maintain a high immigration policy as well as kowtow to India’.
Australia’s Pivot to India makes the case for deeper ties between the two nations
Both Mr Samaras and Mr van Onselen, however, have pointed out that the Coalition itself has failed to connect with migrant voters.
‘The Coalition has sabotaged its own political standing,’ Mr van Onselen said.
He added that while Labor could benefit further as more migrants enroll to vote, Mr Samaras cautioned that the support is not unconditional.
Second and third-generation Indian migrants, he said, may eventually follow other communities in shifting towards the Coalition.
Division and doubling down
Immigration has become a flashpoint in recent days, following nationwide March for Australia rallies on Sunday.
Thousands protested in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide, Hobart and regional cities against record migration levels. Indian migration in particular was singled out in online forums and flyers before the events.
In the aftermath, NT Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price told the ABC’s Afternoon Briefing that the marches reflected genuine concerns from everyday Australians about the ‘core number, or the type, of migrants that are coming in’.
She then singled out the Indian community, adding: ‘I think Labor like to be able to ensure that they’re going to allow those in that would ultimately support their policies, their views, and vote for them as well.
‘This is Labor. Basically, it’s power at any cost. And we see that occur all over the place in terms of the way they conduct themselves,’ she added.
Within an hour, she had issued a clarification.
Andrew Charlton (right) wrote deepening ties with India was a ‘national imperative’ for Australia
‘Australia maintains a longstanding and bipartisan non-discriminatory migration policy. Suggestions otherwise are a mistake,’ she said in a statment.
But the headache for Opposition Leader Sussan Ley, who has been trying to pitch the Coalition as the party for aspiring Australians, worsened when Senator Price later doubled down.
‘In the context of discussing the marches that took place on the weekend, it was the ABC interviewer who pushed the issue, who brought up the issue of anti-Indian migration,’ Senator Price said.
‘What I was doing was highlighting the fact that there is huge concern for Labor’s mass migration agenda, which is applying pressure to housing, to infrastructure, to services. Then I was further pursued on this line of talking.
‘What I did was point out the fact that, yes, Indian migrants are the second-largest migrant group to this country, and soon to be the largest migrant group to this country.
‘A recent Redbridge poll told us that 85 per cent of those who have Indian ancestry – and that’s my children included by the way – 85 per cent voted for Labor … So, these were the facts that I was pointing out.’
Hostile territory
But Indian entrepreneur Divesh Sareen told the Daily Mail the ‘Indian vote’ was not a monolith for Labor, noting many of his friends supported the Coalition.
Mr Sareen, who has lived in Australia since 2008, said he was shocked by the hostility seen around the protests.
‘The lead up to the protest was actually very surprising, just because I actually never thought this kind of a thing would happen in Australia,’ he said.
‘Australia has always been built on migrants, on migration, and I think that’s something we don’t realise.
‘When you’re forced to think, well, maybe I shouldn’t go to the city because there’s a protest, and you could see the signs it might turn into violence, it’s something I had never thought I would feel in a country like Australia.’
He added the rallies made him second-guess his place in Australia.
‘When you define the word “Australian”, I mean, I’ve taken my oath, I’ve got an Australian passport, it’s something I’m proud to call myself but then when things like this happen, you feel like I’ll never be good enough to belong,’ he said.
Dr Charlton, who also chairs the Parliamentary Friends of India group, has noted that the rise in Indian migration long predates the Albanese government.
Numbers began surging in the 1990s as Australia sought more skilled workers and international students.
Between 2016 and 2021, under Coalition governments, the Indian-born population increased by 48 per cent.
There is no evidence Labor has deliberately used immigration to shore up electoral support, though it has enjoyed widespread popularity among Indian Australians.
The Daily Mail has contacted Dr Charlton and Mr Samaras for comment.
