This year marks the 60th anniversary of the creation of the status of Australian citizenship. Since 1949, citizenship has been conferred on more than four million migrants.

During the reporting year, my staff met Mr Angelo Muguira who became a citizen at the first ceremony held in 1949. Now with 22 direct descendants, Mr Muguira typifies the nation-building benefits we can reap over many decades from issuing a single migrant visa.

Since the Department of Immigration was established on 13 July 1945, about seven million people have been granted a visa for permanent migration. As a result, Australia is among the world’s most culturally diverse nations with almost half of us having direct or familial links to another country.

Approximately 45 per cent of all Australians were born overseas or have at least one parent who was born overseas
2006 Census, Australian Bureau of Statistics

Australia has also derived substantial economic benefits from the government’s skilled migration and temporary entry policies and programs during the past six and a half decades. Skilled migrants are filling positions that remain in chronic shortage despite the impacts of the global economic crisis. International students and visitors to Australia make a substantial contribution to our foreign exchange revenue. Australia has also reaped social benefits through the high levels of community harmony and cohesion which draw our diverse society together, so we are regarded internationally as a friendly, respectful and welcoming people. Australia’s changing demographic profile means these policies and services will be valuable in the decades ahead.

During the year, the department’s nation-building activities contributed significantly to the Australian Government’s policy priorities. Our administration of migration and citizenship programs supported the priority of ‘Building a stronger Australia’ through the lasting economic contributions of skilled migrants and temporary entrants and the civic contributions of citizens.

We supported the priority of ‘Building a fairer Australia’ through our administration of our humanitarian programs and our settlement programs which aim to give new arrivals a strong start in Australia. Our cultural diversity programs provide further support and encourage respect in the community for the cultural associations of all Australians.

We are addressing the priority of ‘Preparing for the challenges of the future’ through our readiness to assist the economic recovery with targeted skilled migration programs and by anticipating the effects of demographic change and climate change in our planning for the next decade and beyond.

In preparing the DIAC Strategic Plan 2009–12 (launched on 21 May 2009), I consulted all staff and key stakeholders on changing our purpose statement, which now reads:
Building Australia’s future through the well-managed entry and settlement of people.

As the year closed, our 8043 staff (including about 1000 staff overseas) were engaged in delivering improved and responsive client service across a global network. We were also implementing a demanding program of policy reforms for the minister and government, engaging with a diverse range of stakeholders and managing reductions in migration program targets and resources flowing from the global economic crisis.

In the rest of this review, I will highlight some key developments and challenges across our work in permanent migration and temporary entry, refugee and humanitarian entry, border security, immigration compliance and detention, citizenship, multicultural affairs
and settlement.

Evaluation of the Palmer and Comrie reform agenda—including related Ombudsman reports

Since mid-2005, the department has undertaken an extensive cultural and business transformation dating back to the release of the Palmer, Comrie and subsequent Ombudsman’s reports. In July 2008, I commissioned Ms Elizabeth Proust to undertake an independent review of the department’s achievements. She concluded the department has made very substantial reform progress since 2005 and the implementation of the reforms was essentially complete, with appropriate plans in place in the few remaining areas she identified as requiring further consideration.

As a result of her recommendations for minor improvement or review, engagement with external stakeholders has increased, including informing them about progress with the reform agenda. Ms Proust also emphasised the need for continuing strong management focus on the roll-out of the Systems for People business transformation program and our leadership and engagement with staff.

‘I believe that the time has come to move on from the current focus on Palmer and Comrie to a focus on building and maintaining a high performance culture...’
Ms Elizabeth Proust, November 2008

Following the success of these reforms, we are entering a new phase of activity in which we are building on our reforms and the lessons learned, including by strengthening our ability to innovate using a stronger evidence base.

Support for the minister and parliamentary secretary

The department continued to give strong and responsive support to the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Chris Evans, and the Parliamentary Secretary for Multicultural Affairs and Settlement Services, Mr Laurie Ferguson MP.

The minister is pursuing a substantial reform agenda across the portfolio in areas such as migration, temporary skilled entry, immigration detention, compliance, border security and onshore protection.

Migration Program

The outcome for the 2008–09 permanent Migration Program was 171 318. This included a Skill Stream of 114 777 places, a Family Stream of 56 366 places and 175 Special Eligibility places. Overall, the permanent migration program met the government’s objective of ensuring that Australia’s critical skill shortages were met, while also helping to maintain growth in Australia’s working age population.

In March 2009, in response to the deteriorating economic climate, the permanent migration program planning levels for 2008–09 were revised down to just under 172 000 places from the original planning level of some 190 000 places. Of this, the skilled migration component was reduced by 14 per cent, or 18 500 places. At the same time there was an increase in the proportion of employer and state sponsored components, which support Australian industry by ensuring that critical in-demand skill shortages are addressed.

These demand driven elements of the skilled migration program contributed to nearly 45 per cent of the total skilled migration program. The reduction and restructuring of the skilled migration program, in the wake of the global economic crisis, was a demonstration of the responsiveness of the migration program to achieve the maximum economic and social benefit for Australia during these uncertain times.

In 2008–09, 101 280 subclass 457 visas were granted to temporary skilled workers and their dependants. This was a decrease of 8.4 per cent compared with the previous year. The program responded quickly to changes in the labour market flowing from the global economic crisis with the number of applications lodged in June 2009 being 40 per cent lower than those lodged in September 2008.

Reforms are underway following extensive reviews and consultations to ensure the subclass 457 visa program is responsive to the needs of the labour market and also protects the employment and training opportunities of Australians as well as the rights of overseas workers.

Following the 2007–08 Review of Statutory Self-Regulation of the Migration Advice Profession, the government established the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority. This office reports directly to me and although part of the department, it has its own independent management structure. This change is intended to increase confidence in the integrity of the regulation of registered migration agents.

Humanitarian Program and settlement

The department granted 13 507 visas under the program, including 788 visas in the Woman at Risk category. The intake was drawn from the three priority regions of Africa, Asia, and Middle East/South West Asia.

On 9 August 2008, the Temporary Protection visa arrangements were abolished. From 1 July 2009 the ‘45 day rule’ which denied work rights and Medicare access to some protection visa applicants was abolished.

Following a successful pilot, the department rolled out the national Complex Case Support program to deliver specialised and intensive case management services to humanitarian entrants with exceptional needs.

The government also announced a longer term planning framework for the Humanitarian Program which will further support the resettlement of refugees in protracted situations and provide certainty to allow longer term commitments to be made to particular groups of refugees.

‘Australia has one of the best refugee resettlement programs in the world.’
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Mr António Guterres, March 2009

Citizenship and multicultural affairs

To mark the 60th anniversary of the creation of the status of Australian citizenship the Governor-General opened Citizenship Place by the shores of Lake Burley Griffin in Canberra. The Prime Minister launched the 60th anniversary celebrations at the National Capital Australia Day ceremony, and a coin commemorating the anniversary was released by the Royal Australian Mint. For more information about the celebrations see the Celebrating 60 years of Australian citizenship feature.

The Australian Multicultural Advisory Council was established by the minister to advise the government on practical approaches to promoting social cohesion, engaging migrants in Australian society and overcoming racism and intolerance.

The Diverse Australia Program was launched by the parliamentary secretary following an internal review of the Living In Harmony Program. Harmony Day has been retained and continues to increase in popularity with 4401 Harmony Day events registered on the department’s website this year.

New directions in detention and compliance

While compliance with Australia’s visa programs continues at a very high level, some people overstay visas or otherwise have issues that require resolution of their immigration status.

The minister announced the government’s key immigration detention values in July 2008. These provided a new framework to guide our approach to immigration detention by maintaining a commitment to effective border management while treating unlawful non-citizens with compassion.

The values underpin a risk-based approach to immigration detention which focuses on the prompt resolution of immigration status, using a range of interventions.

Significant progress has been made to ensure immigration detention is only used where clients may represent an unacceptable risk to the community.

Throughout the year, the department promoted early engagement with clients on bridging visas as a way of ensuring better immigration status resolution, with the Community Status Resolution Service formally established in December 2008.

The government provided $77.4 million over four years in the 2009–10 Budget to fund an expansion of this service nationally, as well as funds for a national assisted voluntary return scheme. The Budget decision also created an ongoing program of support and assistance for the most vulnerable, to support the resolution of their immigration status.

As a result, more people are able to have their immigration status resolved while they remain in the community on bridging visas. Rates of compliance with bridging visa requirements remain high. In addition, where immigration detention has been required to resolve a case, the department has been able to significantly reduce the time spent in detention.

Border management

Despite the global economic crisis, we facilitated the entry and departure from Australia of an increasing number of people. A total of 26.1 million passenger and crew arrivals and departures were processed during 2008–09 compared to 25.7 million in 2007–08. There were 1513 people refused immigration clearance at Australia’s airports and seaports for a range of reasons including suspect bona fides.

The Maritime Crew visa has been a highly successful border security initiative, with the department sharing a special award and commendation in the Prime Minister’s awards for excellence in public sector management.

Noting the UN High Commissioner for Refugees has estimated the number of forcibly displaced people worldwide at 42 million, there were 992 irregular maritime arrivals (excluding crew) during the year with 722 of these people in immigration detention on Christmas Island at 30 June 2009.

The department has developed a strong cooperative relationship in recent years with Indonesia’s Directorate-General of Immigration and other immigration services in our region. These relationships have served to strengthen regional efforts to combat people smuggling, human trafficking and transnational crime.

The irregular nature of the arrivals and the need to respond immediately and with due concern for their welfare drew significantly on the department’s resources.

At the end of the year, a significant effort was underway so the people remaining on Christmas Island would have their claims promptly and carefully assessed under the government’s refugee status determination procedures.

Systems for People

Systems for People is the department’s technology-enabled transformation of how we conduct our business. This program reached a high tempo of activity with four major product releases during the year. Highlights include the successful completion of the Security Referral Service project—a fundamental component of the border security initiative. In addition we have made further progress in delivering compliance, case management and detention services in line with the New Directions in Detention policy.

The online Visa and Citizenship Wizards won the prestigious 2009 eAward for Excellence in eGovernment for the department. The department was also highly commended for its eVisitor service, an online facility that allows European Union nationals to lodge visa applications electronically.

‘The Visa and Citizenship Wizards highlight how ICT can be resourcefully applied to the delivery of government services, not only for the benefit of our citizens, but also for prospective Australians and visitors to our country.’
The Hon. Lindsay Tanner, Minister for Finance and Deregulation, 14 May 2009

At the close of the reporting year, the department was preparing substantial enhancements to the generic visa portal which will fundamentally transform and improve the way we process visas.

International engagement

The reinvigoration of the Bali Process on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons and Related Transnational Crime led to significant departmental activity. Representatives from 40 countries and key international organisations attended the Bali Process Regional Ministerial Conference. Outcomes included a renewed regional commitment to address people smuggling and an agreement that an Ad Hoc Group be re-formed to cooperatively address issues of displacement in the region.

I attended the Five Country Conference in Canada in June. This is an annual gathering of immigration, citizenship and border control agency heads from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. Discussions ranged across the impact of the global economic downturn, fraud and risk assessment, biometrics and technology, trusted traveller programs, intelligence sharing, and cooperation on issues around health checking.

World Youth Day

World Youth Day was one of the largest events the department has been involved in, comparable to the requirements for the Sydney Olympic Games. The department granted approximately 71 000 fee-free World Youth Day visas as well as more than 30 000 other tourist visas. Staff worked hard to facilitate the entry of these people and leave a lasting positive image of Australia with them.

Clarke Inquiry into the case of Dr Mohamed Haneef

The Clarke Inquiry into the case of Dr Mohamed Haneef was tabled in parliament on 23 December 2008. The department recognised the importance of this investigation in improving public administration and cooperated fully with the inquiry. All recommendations have been accepted by the government and are being implemented by the department in conjunction with other agencies.

Commonwealth and Immigration Ombudsman’s reports on the 247 referred cases

As part of its continuing process of reform and resolving past issues, the department continued to actively pursue the resolution of status and compensation (where appropriate) for people within the 247 cases which were referred to the Ombudsman in 2005.

The department strives to reach out of court settlements fairly and reasonably so as to avoid undue costs and further distress to affected persons. During 2008–09 the department reached out of court settlements with 32 people for events which occurred between December 1998 and March 2006.

Coronial Inquest into the loss of the Malu Sara

In February, the Queensland State Coroner handed down his findings and recommendations concerning the tragic loss in the Torres Strait of the Malu Sara, an immigration response vessel, in October 2005. Five people died as a result of this avoidable tragedy, two of whom were departmental employees.

The department cooperated fully with the inquest, providing extensive information to help the coroner. Upon receipt of the coroner’s findings, I immediately instituted a code of conduct inquiry into the department’s former regional manager for the Torres Strait. The officer chose to resign before the investigation could be completed and, as there is no provision under the Public Service Act 1999 to investigate a former APS officer, the investigation was closed. The department has also cooperated closely with Comcare and awaits the release of its report and findings.

I want to again acknowledge the department’s deep sadness on the loss of life and record the department’s condolences to the families, friends and colleagues of those who were lost, and also to the wider Torres Strait communities. The department is deeply sorry that the tragic sequence of events as described by the coroner occurred, and for the losses suffered by all those affected by this avoidable tragedy.

The department has since made changes and improvements to its procedures to ensure that such a tragedy could never occur again, and that the welfare and wellbeing of staff will aways be a paramount objective in our operations. The department has advised the coroner of the actions taken in relation to his recommendations.

We are continuing to explore ways to honour and remember those who died. We are also seeking to provide the best possible support we can to those staff most affected. In February, our Movement Monitoring Officers held a healing session and a plaque in memory of our staff lost as a result of the tragedy is making its way around each of our offices in the Torres Strait.

Litigation

As at 30 June 2009, there were 828 matters before the courts and the Administrative Appeals Tribunal challenging migration decisions. A further 34 civil compensation claims were before the courts. The continuing trend of a reduction in the caseload before the courts is due, in large part, to the significant efforts of the department, the Attorney-General’s Department and the courts to clear the backlog of migration matters. This is a pleasing result that will assist in further reducing the time taken to resolve cases for our clients. The minister’s ‘success’ rate of defended matters in the courts remains very high.

Commonwealth and Immigration Ombudsman

The Ombudsman’s office has noted significant improvements in the department’s complaint handling capability throughout 2008–09. This has led to the decision that most complaints to the Ombudsman can be referred to our Global Feedback Unit for resolution in the first instance.

As a result of improved communications, the Ombudsman’s office has also decided to reduce the quarterly reporting arrangements on the department’s activities to once every six months.

Freedom of Information

More than 10 500 Freedom of Information (FOI) requests were received. At 30 June 2009, 966 requests were on hand, with 211 cases more than 30 days overdue. This was a significant improvement on previous years.

A pro-disclosure culture has been adopted and promoted throughout the department in preparation for the implementation of substantial amendments to the Freedom of Information Act 1982 in 2010.

Corporate enabling services

Our corporate areas continued to perform strongly to ‘enable’ the business of the department. For example:

• more than 2000 staff have been trained since the College of Immigration commenced, including field compliance staff, detention services staff and investigators
• approximately 3000 employees received face-to-face refresher training on the APS Values and Code of Conduct during the year
• the introduction of an on-line Performance and Development Agreement and 360 degree feedback tool facilitated performance management
• the results of the 2008 staff survey were a key input into the development and refinement of strategic and divisional business plans for the current financial year
• five Bills were introduced to parliament, 63 regulation amendments were made and 3757 legal advisings matters were provided in-house with an additional 530 legal advisings being provided by the department’s external legal services panel and the Attorney-General’s Department
• a total of 2763 matters were resolved in the courts and the Administrative Appeals Tribunal with 94 per cent of defended court matters resolved in the minister’s favour
• the commissioning of an online newsroom and a dedicated YouTube immigration channel supported journalists and others seeking quick access to internally produced broadcast and multimedia materials, as well as more than 300 portfolio media releases
• more than 3050 media enquiries were responded to, resulting in the preparation of 1200 sets of talking points for the media
• ongoing cooperation with the Seven Network in the filming of one of Australia’s most popular TV series, ‘Border Security’, continued to promote the department’s operations and activities to an Australia-wide audience of between 1.5–2 million people each week.

Formulation of long-term policy directions

I established a Policy Innovation and Research Unit, reporting directly to me, in July 2008. The unit identifies and analyses long-term policy issues and provides strategic policy advice to the minister and my Executive Committee.

The research program was approved in October 2008 with commissioned research projects covering the settlement outcomes of new arrivals, the contribution of humanitarian entrants and the long-term impact of the migration program.

I also appointed a chief economist to strengthen our capability in this critical area of government policy and decision-making and support an improved understanding among staff and externally of the economic impacts and benefits of migration.

Client service

The department continued to identify and drive strategies to improve client service in approximately 100 offices across our Australian and overseas network.

The 2008 Client Service Intercept Poll results indicate that 91 per cent of clients surveyed were ‘very satisfied’ or ‘satisfied’ with the in-person service they received at a number of state and territory office locations. About 98 per cent of surveyed clients visiting an office reported being treated with courtesy along with 99 per cent who telephoned the department.

In the 2008 Centres of Excellence Client Satisfaction Survey, overall satisfaction levels were high across all client groups surveyed, with 80 per cent responding they were ‘satisfied’ to ‘very satisfied’ with the service they received.

Among other improvements, the Business Liaison and Systems Taskforce has ensured our stronger client focus is reflected in our information technology systems, such as the Systems for People generic visa portal.

Stakeholder engagement

Feedback from stakeholders continues to acknowledge increased levels of engagement and the value of the business and cultural improvements recognised in the review by Ms Elizabeth Proust.

Amongst the range of community engagement activities pursued by the department, five practitioner information forums were held across Australia during July and August with positive feedback from participants.

Staff welfare

The department’s Comcare premium has reduced substantially, by almost $3 million in 2008–09. This reflects the vigorous implementation of our Injury Prevention and Management Plan 2006–2009 and the Comcare Partnership Agreement. Staff are benefiting through the successful focus on injury prevention and improved strategies to manage their claims and return to the workplace.

Staff survey

Each of the three staff surveys since 2005 has shown overall improvement and we substantially exceeded our overall performance improvement target in the 2008 survey.

We now also compare well with Australian benchmarks—we are above or equal to the public sector benchmark in six of the seven drivers of motivation, and our commitment levels remain considerably above the public sector mean.

While these overall results are pleasing, I am keen to improve these scores, including by addressing issues around leadership and leadership communication. We conducted employee focus groups to gain an understanding about leadership concerns, implemented a new performance management strategy and rolled out local leadership discussion and action strategies. The 2009 staff survey will include additional questioning on leadership issues to clarify staff views.

Charitable and community activities

This year, the department’s social clubs around Australia were again active in hosting events to raise money for charity, with more than $60 000 raised through events such as a Masquerade Ball for the Australian Red Cross, Movember, Shave for a Cure and Pink Ribbon Day.

In addition, staff also responded generously to the devastating loss of life in the Victorian bushfires, with $50 000 raised through the social clubs and other informal fund raising efforts, $215 000 raised through joint fundraising efforts with other government agencies at our overseas posts and more than $20 000 donated to the Red Cross through our workplace giving program.

I am a White Ribbon ambassador and seek to eliminate violence against women by engaging other men to challenge existing attitudes and behaviour, and create respectful relationships with women.

Conclusion

The 2008–09 reporting year was another busy and productive period for the department.

We have responded vigorously to the requirements of the minister and parliamentary secretary, and in implementing the government’s broader reform agenda. This work has occurred despite significant budget pressures, which we are continuing to address through savings reviews, structural reform and reduction in staffing numbers.

I offer my thanks to our senior leaders and our staff for their many and valuable contributions during the year. There is strong recognition among staff of the value of our nation-building activities and many people have provided extraordinary levels of service this year.

Outlook

At the close of the year, preparations were underway to chart a new direction for the department.

A new structure will group responsibility for all policy and program management functions, thereby increasing our policy and evaluation focus in response to the government’s forward agenda.

Corporate and business support services will also be grouped to provide strategic advice, streamlined and efficient services, and an enhanced focus on risk, program integrity and fraud.

A new client services transformation strategy will clearly put our clients at the centre of our work, while seeking to deliver significant efficiencies. Our vision is that all client interactions will be managed in a globally integrated way, through greater use of electronic and self help services, risk tiering of work, smart centres and service delivery partners.

This transformation strategy underscores our challenge to work as a globally integrated organisation, dedicated to continuously improving our performance and productivity, so that we deliver better migration and citizenship outcomes for our clients and Australia, now and into the future.

Andrew Metcalfe

Secretary