Publication Powers for Information About Approved Work Sponsors
Migration Amendment (Combatting Migrant Exploitation) Bill 2025
House of Representatives
Senate
Assent
Introduced by: The Hon Tony Burke MP (ALP)
Links to official parliament websites
Effects of this bill
If this bill passes, it means that:
The Debate
What different members said when this bill was debated:
Tony Burke ALP
“I’ve been given two copies of the speech; I’ll only read it once! I move: That this bill be now read a second time. The Migration Amendment (Combatting Migrant Exploitation) Bill 2025 amends the Migration Act 1958to establish the legislative framework for a public register of approved work sponsors to be published and maintained on the Department of Home Affairs website.”
Alex Hawke LIB
“The coalition will not support the passage of the Migration Amendment (Combatting Migrant Exploitation) Bill 2025. This bill represents the government’s response to the longstanding and well-documented problem of the exploitation of temporary migrant workers in Australia. It sits within the broader package of measures first announced in the government’s December 2023 Migration Strategy.”
“In my first speech in this place, I was honoured to honour some former immigrants to this country—my family. Members of the Moo family arrived in Australia in the late 1800s, settling in Darwin. Moo Yat Fah worked as a labourer on the construction of the Darwin to Pine Creek railroad, like many other people. Deputy Speaker Scrymgour, I know many people in your electorate have this history as well.”
Anne Webster NAT
“I rise this afternoon to speak about the Migration Amendment (Combatting Migrant Exploitation) Bill 2025. As the member for Mallee and the shadow minister for regional development, I emphasise how agriculture—particularly horticulture in Mallee—relies on migrant workers. Workforce shortages are a fact of life in regional Australia, and Mallee is no exception.”
Ash Ambihaipahar ALP
“I rise to speak on the Migration Amendment (Combatting Migrant Exploitation) Bill 2025. I do so as not only the federal member for Barton but also someone whose professional life before entering parliament was spent, for a lot of the time, in the space of employment law. For over a decade, I represented workers who were underpaid, mistreated, threatened or simply too scared to speak up.”
Barnaby Joyce PHON
“I concur with some of the remarks and disagree slightly with others that have been made. A large section of this revolves around the insertion into the Migration Act of section 140GD by the Migration Amendment (Combatting Migrant Exploitation) Bill 2025. One of the issues there is that it comes with an assumption that all could be bad when all is not.”
“I rise to speak in support of the Migration Amendment (Combatting Migrant Exploitation) Bill 2025, put forward by the Minister for Home Affairs, and I commend him for doing so. I’m not sure about the member for New England’s frankly confusing and somewhat offensive comments before me. He, like his party, wants to continue creating friction and heat in multicultural communities across our nation.”
“The member for Gorton is new here. I wasn’t going to pick on her about her speech, but some of the things that she mentioned— Mr Thistlethwaite: Then don’t. Mr McCORMACK: I listened to her in silence, so the member for Kingsford Smith can give me the same courtesy, and I’ll get to you in a minute. She cannot come in here and start talking about racism in the coalition.”
“Modern Australia is built on migration. The great economic advancements that we had in the wake of World War II were related to the ’populate or perish’ policy that our immigration department and Arthur Calwell delivered in those important years after the Second World War. Unfortunately, as a government, we’re aware that too many migrants who are working in Australia have been exploited.”
Sam Birrell NAT
“I too rise to speak on the Migration Amendment (Combatting Migrant Exploitation) Bill 2025. This bill will insert a new section into the Migration Act 1958 that authorises the secretary of the Department of Home Affairs to publish a public register containing the details of employee sponsorship of skilled migrants. The bill title attempts to link this register to combating migrant exploitation.”
Julian Hill ALP
“I think you had 58 seconds to go, after all those fine words, when you finally fessed up that, despite all the concern about exploitation of migrant workers and all the noble sentiments, you’re actually not going to vote for the bill.”
Tony Zappia ALP
“I speak in support of the Migration Amendment (Combatting Migrant Exploitation) Bill 2025. Over recent years there’s been a lot of misinformation about migration.”
Shayne Neumann ALP
“This country has been built on three aspects: first, the immense contribution of First Nations people, who’ve been here for tens of thousands of years; second, the British colonial settlement that was established in the aftermath of Captain Phillip’s arrival; and, third, the waves of migration that came to this country post World War II. We are blessed for having had those waves of migration.”
Ms ROBERTS
“The incorporated speech read as follows— Thank you, Deputy Speaker. The Migration Amendment (Combatting Migrant Exploitation) Bill 2025 marks a significant and necessary advancement in strengthening our temporary skilled work visa program whilst protecting migrant workers who contribute so much to our nation.”