Labor's refugee backflip leaves thousands without a pathway to safety

National refugee resettlement provider SSI has condemned reports that the Albanese Government will reduce Australia's annual humanitarian intake from 20,000 places to 13,750, describing the move as a backwards step that betrays both Labor's longstanding commitments and Australia's humanitarian responsibilities. 

SSI CEO Violet Roumeliotis said the reported decision comes as record numbers of people around the world are displaced by conflict, persecution and humanitarian crises, while settlement places globally are drastically shrinking. 

"At a time when the world faces one of the largest displacement crises in human history, Australia should be stepping up, not stepping back,” she said 

"Labor has repeatedly articulated an aspiration to increase Australia's humanitarian intake to 27,000 places a year. Instead, we are seeing a reduction of more than 30 per cent. This is not simply a failure to meet an aspiration. It is a backflip whose impact will fall on the world’s most vulnerable." 

The Australian Labor Party's platform taken to the 2025 national conference sets out an aspiration to progressively increasing Australia's government-funded humanitarian intake to 27,000 places annually. 

"Australians were promised a stronger humanitarian response. What has been proposed is the exact opposite,” said Ms Roumeliotis. 

"The consequence of this decision is not abstract. It means thousands of refugees fleeing persecution will not have access to one of the few durable solutions available through refugee resettlement. 

“These changes are being made under the guise of reducing overseas net migration, but the actual impact on migration numbers is marginal at best. This decision is shutting out people who most need to come to Australia.” 

The reported reduction follows growing international pressure on refugee resettlement pathways given the United States withdrawing from longstanding refugee settlement commitments, which has already drastically reduced the number of places available globally. 

“We should not be taking cues from governments that are retreating from their humanitarian obligations,” she said. 

"Australia has a proud history of providing protection to people fleeing conflict and persecution, and a refugee settlement program that has long been regarded as among the best in the world." 

According to the latest data from the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), approximately 117.8 million people worldwide were forcibly displaced by the end of 2025, including more than 41 million refugees and people in need of international protection. Despite this unprecedented level of global need, the number of refugees resettled through official pathways has fallen sharply.  

"These figures should be a call to action. Instead, Australia is choosing to shirk its responsibility." 

SSI has consistently called for Australia to increase its humanitarian intake to 27,000 places and to maintain a strong, predictable and generous refugee resettlement program that reflects both community expectations and Australia's international responsibilities.  

"Australia is a stronger, more prosperous and more cohesive nation because generations of refugees have been welcomed here. Now is not the time to close the door to safety." 

Ms Roumeliotis said Australia’s refugee resettlement sector has shown time and again a willingness and capacity to do its part to help the world’s most vulnerable. 

“We demonstrated this in 2016 with the successful resettlement of the one-off intake of an additional 12,000 refugees from Iraq and Syria, and then again in 2021, when we had less than 72 hours to prepare for refugees fleeing the Taliban’s rapid takeover of Afghanistan. 

“We are agile, resourceful, and ready to do our part to support both people fleeing war and persecution and our government as it works to resettle this cohort. All we’re asking the government to do is open the door.”