Treasurer Jim Chalmers has argued that sustained migration is essential to support Australia’s ageing population, citing new projections that deaths will outnumber births within four decades. The warning comes as the City of Sydney moves to ban smart glasses across its public facilities, joining a growing number of councils restricting wearable recording devices over privacy and harassment concerns.
The latest Intergenerational Report, released every three years, has forecast for the first time that Australia’s declining birth rate will result in more deaths than births by the early 2060s. Chalmers told the ABC’s 7.30 program that fertility rates are falling faster than anticipated just a few years ago, as people choose to have smaller families later in life.
In this context, Chalmers said “any objective observer would conclude that we need responsible levels of migration” to support the ageing population:
Migration is a force for good in our economy and in our society.
We will continue to make the case for getting that net overseas migration down in the most responsible way, that balances all of the key considerations in our economy and in local communities.
The remarks follow Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke’s announcement last week of long-awaited immigration rule changes, which target net overseas migration of 245,000 this financial year and 225,000 in 2027-28.
Government pledges comprehensive response to domestic violence
Chalmers also declared the Albanese government is committed to doing “everything we can” to address domestic violence, following a devastating weekend in New South Wales. A mother allegedly fatally stabbed a child and wounded two others in the Blue Mountains, while three other women were allegedly murdered in separate incidents across the state.
The Treasurer acknowledged expert views that inaccessible housing contributes to domestic violence, alongside the “magnitude” of misogynistic content online, and emphasised the importance of frontline staffing.
I work closely with the prime minister and [women’s minister] Katy Gallagher and the relevant ministers to make sure that police and others get the resourcing they need, working with state governments.
City of Sydney bans smart glasses from public facilities
The City of Sydney has prohibited smart glasses in all its pools, libraries, gyms, childcare centres and town halls. The council voted to update signage and guidance to prevent the devices being worn in community facilities, citing escalating privacy and harassment concerns.
Greens councillor Matthew Thompson, who proposed the motion, said it includes exemptions for people who rely on the glasses as accessibility aids, including those with vision and hearing impairments. He urged the federal government to strengthen regulation of the devices and prevent misuse:
Overseas we’re seeing women being targeted and harassed in public and recorded without their consent. We don’t want what’s happening in the US to happen here.
That’s why we’re banning smart glasses and other wearable recording devices from all of our pools, gyms, childcare [centres], libraries and other council spaces.
Cheap wearable devices like smart glasses are already flooding the market. But instead of stopping this problem, the federal Labor government has dumped it on to councils to sort out.
We need an import ban on these cheap, intrusive devices until we have stronger privacy protections and clear standards implemented nationally.
Canterbury-Bankstown Council introduced similar restrictions last week, with Mayor Bilal El-Hayek denouncing what he called “pervert glasses” as the council barred the technology from public pools. In August, Brisbane City Council became the first to ban the glasses from pools, while Melbourne’s Yarra City Council has prohibited them from playgrounds, childcare centres and gyms.
