How did we manage to bring so many people into the country and fail to have enough doctors when they get here?

This is the question we’ve all asked every surge of immigration we’ve ever had.  

And there’s been many. I’m one. I came out in 1965 with my English father and Kiwi mum.  

And there’s been many more waves.  

Every time we’ve opened the door there seems to have been an attitude that we’ll take the immigrants labour, money, and advantages but ignore the consequences of a bigger population. 

So Simeon Brown's announcement of a faster track to qualifying overseas doctors who come here is welcome and about time.  

Our immigration booms have distorted our society.  

It swamped our motorways; it put strain on housing and infrastructure.  

And it crushed our service sector including doctors.  

Yet it also made people think we had a rockstar economy. It was artificial. 

If the economy is rocking but you can’t see a doctor, is it really rocking?  

Finally, we seem to be realising that if we bring in more people, we need to look at the whole picture.