John MacDonald: Shane's butter chicken is giving me indigestion

I can’t think of one negative impact people moving here from overseas have had on my life.  Not one.  I can tell you plenty of good things. But not anything negative.  Which is why I'll never understand why immigrants get such a bad rap. It’s an easy excuse, though. Not happy about something? Blame the immigrants.  And it’s NZ First’s Shane Jones is talking the nonsense he is. Warning us of a “Butter chicken tsunami” of new immigrants if New Zealand goes ahead with this free trade agreement with India.  NZ First is opposed to the agreement, because it says it doesn’t cap the number of students who could come here from India.  Which is an argument that has already been put to bed because there are no limitations on the number of international students who can come here from any country.   Tell that to Shane Jones, though.   But I'm with the Prime Minister, Christopher Luxon, who has hit back.  He was asked about it at the media conference after yesterday’s cabinet meeting.  Initially, he was a bit wishy-washy. But then he let rip. Saying New Zealand is a better place because of immigration.  Without immigration, a lot of things would struggle to keep going.  People moving here fill labour shortages.   Think of the nursing staff in the hospitals. Think of all those construction workers i see walking to work first thing in the morning.  Think of all the people who have migrated here to work on our dairy farms.    People move here to invest, as well.  Think of the people from overseas who have started businesses or bought existing businesses.  Think of the wealthy immigrants who have taken advantage of the golden visa scheme who are investing big money here.  These are genuine benefits.  Not to mention the benefit we all get from the extra diversity. Every time I go through town, I love the fact that I see the same mix of people I've seen in other cities around the world.  Some people, though, seem to think that’s a bad thing. These are generally the ones who will celebrate St Patrick's day - but won’t want a bar of Diwali.  But where are you on this one?  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.