Understand poplation statistics and population issues

Comments on Bernard Salt “Making sense of population push”, 8/04/2010, http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/property/making-sense-of-population-push/story-e6frg9gx-1225851117721

If Salt's reasoning and argument is true, then there is a case to distinguish between temporary and permanent residents in Australia from ABS population statistics.

If that information is clearly disseminated and understood, the public, bureaucrats and politicians can make a better debate on what is the optimal population level and how to plan and manage population growth in the future.

Further the argument of overseas students by Salt appears incomplete, because while there are more comings, there should generally be more leavings as well, leaving the net increase of overseas students not that high.

There must be something else that Salt either ignored or neglected. I guess it could be the increase in the graduates from overseas students in Australia to become permanent residents or at least allowed to stay temporarily longer.

In order for the public to make sense of population issues, we need the public to understand important information behind population statistics.