Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has indicated plans to review visa arrangements for British backpackers following a sharp rise in the number of young UK travellers settling temporarily in popular Australian destinations.
Albanese raised the possibility of changing the existing agreement with Britain during a meeting with Andy Burnham on Monday evening at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in the Caribbean.
He told reporters he wanted to discuss the arrangement, which exempts British backpackers from the regional work requirement imposed on travellers from several other countries.
Previously, backpackers had to complete about three months of work in regional areas to meet certain visa conditions and help address labour shortages in parts of Australia.
However, a free trade agreement signed under former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson removed that requirement for British citizens. The deal also increased the maximum visa duration to three years and raised the age limit to 35.
According to the Australian government, the changes have contributed to a significant increase in British visitors, with arrivals rising from 40,000 two years ago to 87,000 last year.
Most of the travellers have reportedly concentrated in Sydney and nearby coastal communities, while fewer than 10,000 Australians travelled to the UK under the reciprocal arrangement last year.
Albanese told the Australian parliament that the concentration of British backpackers in a few locations was putting pressure on local employment opportunities, particularly in the hospitality sector.
“They are staying at Bondi Beach or Coogee or around particularly the capital cities and working in hospitality there. That’s placing enormous pressure because it’s distorting the labour market in these areas as well,” he said.
Burnham confirmed that he had a meeting scheduled with Albanese but avoided giving details about whether changes to the visa arrangement would be discussed.
Asked if the issue would feature on the agenda, he responded, “we’ll see”.
A Downing Street spokesperson also confirmed that the two leaders had discussed the visa arrangement during a bilateral meeting in Antigua, but no agreement on possible changes was announced.
A statement on the meeting said both leaders recognised the importance of maintaining strong relations between the two countries amid growing global uncertainty.
“The leaders discussed the increasingly uncertain global landscape and agreed that strong partnerships between close allies like the UK and Australia are more important than ever,” the statement read.
It added that they discussed opportunities for young people to travel and work abroad, alongside wider migration issues, including the UK’s new rules for migrants seeking to settle in the country and efforts to reduce illegal migration.
The leaders also agreed to continue their discussions during the Commonwealth summit and maintain contact.
