Basil Zempilas: Migration misstep Australia’s greatest economic failing

1. Migration is fundamental to who we are as a country and essential to where we want to get to. To grow, we need more people and to get more people we have to make it easier for them to move here and to stay here. The hundreds of thousands of migrant and temporary visa applications currently waiting to be processed is one of our nation’s greatest modern failings. Let’s get it fixed and get our country moving.

2. And here’s an idea — how about we prioritise residential construction workers so the second and subsequent waves of arrivals can have somewhere to live. Modern failing number two.

3. Every time I see Amber-Jade Sanderson squaring up to the latest round of probing questions on whatever the latest issue in our health system is, I can’t help but think Roger Cook must be loving life. Exmouth looked fun.

4. We missed out on the AFL’s Gather Round and the first Australian tournament of the Saudi-backed, Greg Norman-spruiked LIV Golf. Let’s not miss out on being the host city when a second Australian event is added next year. Right now it’s 2-nil South Australia.

5. We won’t be hosting the Quad meeting next month either. Our PM, along with the leaders of the US, Japan and India will congregate in Sydney instead. Shortly after his election win I wrote to Anthony Albanese and suggested Perth would be the ideal city for the next Quad. I got a nice message back where the PM indicated “he’d see what he could do”. Then, last October I received a call from a senior government official saying we wouldn’t be getting the Quad, but thanks for asking and the PM has decided on Perth as the venue to meet Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. A bit of a consolation event if you like. The Japanese PM came to Perth last October and hugged a koala at Kings Park. Two out of four world leaders isn’t bad.

6. Given he’s announced he’s running for a second term, we may still get to see US President Joe Biden in Perth some day. He’d be a grey nomad with a difference.

7. This week, music to the ears and rears of those who have visited Perth recently and asked “where are the public toilets?” On Wednesday night the City of Perth’s public toilet plan was approved by council which among other things will deliver public toilets in four new city locations and upgrades to existing facilities at a further six locations.

8. It’s taken more than a year to confirm what I reckon many people figured out 12 months ago. Andrew Dillon will replace Gillon McLachlan as AFL CEO.

9. Sometimes, we forget how dangerous horse racing can be. The tragic death of a much-loved rider after a fall at a Victorian race meeting on Monday serves as a shocking reminder. Vale Dean Holland.

10. The worse our teams play, the better columnist Peter Sumich gets. Recruit of the year.