Dick Smith (AC), Prof. Ian Lowe and Prof. Anne Poelina have joined over seventeen thousand Australians in signing a position statement calling for the stabilisation of Australia's population.
Sustainable Population Australia (SPA) National President, Peter Strachan said," Australians are angry about the impact of rapid population growth on their lives and are frustrated that their voices are not being heard by our political leaders."
"Before he was elected, Mr Albanese stated that Australian's needed a 'mature' debate on population" said Mr Strachan. "Australians have spoken and are waiting for our Federal leaders to meet us at the table.
"The position statement, at the centre of SPA's 'Say NO to a Big Australia!' campaign, is the prime tool that Australians can use to demonstrate how they feel about population growth."
Prof. Anne Poelina, First Australia Patron of SPA, said "there is overwhelming evidence that transformative changes are needed to overcome the human social, economic and legal challenges - as well as biodiversity and biosecurity threats - associated with ever expanding populations." Prof. Ian Lowe said, "There is no possibility of achieving our stated goal of sustainable development if we don't stabilise the human population and reduce our resource demands"
Dick Smith (AC), Prof. Ian Lowe and Prof. Anne Poelina are signatories to the SPA position statement, calling for a stabilisation of Australia's population.
With a federal election predicted for mid-2025, Mr Strachan said that Immigration will be one of the key issues that will define the outcome of the election.
"Survey after survey demonstrates that most Australians want population growth to stop. Congestion, cost of living, the housing crisis, along with concerns for the environment and water security are just a few of the reasons why Australians are seeking real leadership on this issue.
"People are tired of having their voices dismissed by vested interests, including property developers, big business and, counterintuitively, many environment and conservation organisations. They are frustrated by having the population debate shut down as racist or anti-migration when they simply accept the fundamental fact that we can't have infinite growth on a finite continent."
"The incredible response to SPA's Position Statement demonstrates that Australians want a united voice on the issue and are entrusting SPA to be their voice on this very critical issue."
SPA calls for policies that see Australia's population stabilise below 30 million. This could be achieved easily by Federal policies adopting lower net overseas migration (NOM) targets of 60, 000 to 70, 000 per year.
SPA's 'Say NO to a Big Australia!' campaign has reached hundreds of thousands of Australians through social media and online advertisements. The campaign has also encouraged hundreds of Australians to email their Federal MPs to voice their concerns on the housing crisis.
In November 2024, SPA will be launching a report examining the impacts of population growth on water security.
