Senator Chris Evans, the Minister of Immigration in the new Australian Federal Government, has announced that the Australian citizenship test will be reviewed.  This will be undertaken as part of the process of the new Government taking office.

The Minister also released figures showing the number of people who have taken, and passed, the test. 10,725 citizenship tests were completed from 1 October 2007, when the test was introduced, and 31 December 2007.  About 90 percent of applicants have passed the test on their first or subsequent attempt.  But of the total number of tests taken about 20 percent resulted in failure.

The failure rate has been heavily criticised by some observers, particularly groups representing refugees and ethnic minorities.  These groups have also questioned more fundamental aspects of the test and have labelled it discriminatory.  They say it fails to test applicants on the things they need to know to live successfully in Australia.

The Minister has continued to back the concept of the test but wants to undertake a review that looks at the content of the test and the support services provided with it.  ‘If people are not succeeding, we need to find out why, and how we can help to support them better. It’s all about making the process work better for all concerned”, he stated. 

Former Prime Minister John Howard was heavily involved in the development of the test and ensured the study materials had a strong emphasis on culture and history.

For the meantime the testing process will continue as normal.