Welcome to the era of pub test politics, Australia.
The good news is you won't go thirsty. The bad news is that things like evidence, detail and policy nuance have been replaced by beer.
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Language and values tests spearhead citizenship clampdown
Tough new citizenship hurdles introduced by the Turnbull government will test applicants language skills, analyse their criminal history and require four years of permanent residency.
On Thursday, the Turnbull government released changes to Australia's citizenship requirements.
Telling viewers there was "no more important title" in our democracy than "Australian citizen", the Prime Minister went on to announce stronger English-language requirements and a revamped citizenship test, with a greater focus on "Australian values".
While Malcolm Turnbull again praised Australia's migrant credentials â "we are the most successful multicultural society in the world" â the unavoidable message here is that there is something ominously wrong with our current multicultural model. And that the problem lies with those seeking to become Australian citizens.
Otherwise, why else bring up domestic violence, gangs and female genital mutilation as part of the argument? Or for Immigration Minister Peter Dutton to speak of the need to "abide by Australian laws" and to work, rather than lead a life on welfare.
"We are making no apologies for the fact that we do want people to be able to integrate," Dutton continued.
On the surface it is compelling stuff. After all, who could argue against any of it? Who would possibly say people in Australia don't need to speak English? And that it's preferable to hang out on the dole and beat people up rather than go to work?
![Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Immigration Minister Peter Dutton on Thursday.](/web/20170424050148im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/o/a/r/2/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gvoeyf.png/1492702626888.jpg)
But in the media release, discussion paper and multiple press conferences so far offered up on the subject, it is hard to find any specific evidence of why Australia needs this citizenship overhaul now. Or that it will actually fix the aforementioned problems.
The media release points to a Productivity Commission report released last year. While it recommended "raising the bar" in terms of skilled migrants, it also talked of the need for better settlement services and warned against immigrant worker exploitation. The commission also noted that as of 2011, 90 per cent of Australia's overseas-born population had good English skills and that this figure had increased slightly since the 1980s.
![There is a trend of answering policy questions with pub-friendly generalisations.](/web/20170424050148im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/o/w/k/e/0/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gvoeyf.png/1492702626888.jpg)
The report added that immigrants generally have higher levels of education than the rest of the population. That is, it did not paint a picture of hordes of non-English speakers coming to the country with low skills wanting to sponge off upstanding Aussies.
This is not to argue that Australia's migration and citizenship system can't be improved or that the government shouldn't undertake measures to stop violence in the community.
But is introducing a headline-grabbing test going to achieve anything other than feed a climate of fear and antagonism towards new Australians?
Surely English proficiency could also be addressed by improving settlement services for incoming Australians (as migration experts have also suggested), and such issues as female genital mutilation (which while shocking, is not a widespread problem) tackled by a mix of doctors, child services, police and community programs.
Then again, this would be not be in keeping with the trend of answering policy questions with pub-friendly generalisations.
Earlier this month, when selling the government's company tax cuts, Treasurer Scott Morrison batted away questions about how many more jobs would be created by telling journalists to go to the pub and ask real people what they thought of the policy.
Earlier this week, when asked a similar question on the 457 visa changes, Turnbull similarly avoided the question with broad, difficult-to-argue-against, observations.
"Well, certainly, there will be more opportunities for Australians to get jobs," he told the ABC's AM program. "This is about putting Australians first, Australian jobs first, Australian values first."
If the goal is a stronger, more harmonious democracy, it certainly seems counter-intuitive to sound alarm bells on Australia's migrants and their values.
But if it outplays One Nation, Labor and insurrection from within, you can see why the government will drink to that.