PETER VAN ONSELEN: Australia is crying out for more nurses and tradies. So what does Anthony Albanese give us? Dog handlers and kung fu experts

It might surprise you to find out which jobs the Albanese government wants new migrants to be skilled at doing and which ones it chooses to reject. The decisions appear highly questionable. 

Daily Mail Australia has trawled over Labor's lists to uncover its priorities when it comes to skilled migration. The findings are startling to say the least. 

For example, dog handlers are in, emergency services workers are out. And that's just two examples - there are many more that defy common sense. 

The Master Builders and the Opposition have been up in arms this week about revelations that yoga instructors are set to get preferential treatment when it comes to skilled migration over trades including painters, tilers and stonemasons. 

The revelations come in the midst of a housing crisis, with not enough properties available to service the nation's needs. 

Jobs and Skills Australia has attempted to justify its decision, but even the peak body for yoga instructors in Australia has questioned whether we need more coming into the country. 

The Opposition and the Master Builders Association question the government's priorities in putting some trades on the 'maybe' list, with accusations that limiting skilled migration in the construction sector is all about pandering to the union movement. 

Daily Mail Australia can reveal that there are plenty of other questionable 'ins and outs' on the Jobs and Skills Australia list.

The draft skills list, drawn up at the request of the Albanese government, puts various jobs into three separate catagories: those favoured for skilled migration entry, those on the maybe list - requiring further consultation - and those skilled professions rejected entirely. 

The government says the list is all about satisfying employment needs, but we have seen before that when governments try to pick winners for medium to long-term national needs, they don't always get it right. 

Australia is set to reject migrants in the following employment areas: Emergency services workers, nurse managers, disability services officers, child or youth carers and beef and sheep farmers. 

The decision to reject workers in these areas comes despite the Albanese government banging on about the prioritisation of many of these services to the Australian community. 

Questionable jobs that get the tick of approval for migration to Australia don't just include yoga instructors either. Wushu martial artists and dog handlers are also on the list. 

Wushu martial arts is a form of kung fu. It integrates Shaolin kung fu and tai chi. It can include the use of swords. According to Jobs and Skills Australia we are in short supply of these martial arts experts and need more of them to satisfy demand. 

But we don't need emergency service and disability workers apparently, nor youth carers, nurse managers or even medical scientists. Despite the investments being made in the National Disability Insurance Scheme and the challenges of an ageing population. Retirement village managers are also rejected along with health services managers. 

The government likes to warn Australians about the impact of climate change on our environment, including an increase in extreme weather events that will apparently only get worse. Yet emergency services workers are rejected for migration. 

Beyond the preference for more dog handlers, yoga instructors and wushu martial artists, Jobs and Skills Australia also gives the tick for migration entry to television journalists (I thought the sector was in free fall with redundancies galore?), artistic directors, retail buyers and arts administrators. 

The puzzling decisions don't end there. While the maybe list - subject to further consultation before approval may or may not be given - includes a number of skilled trades that the building sector is crying out for, other industries are also puzzled by why needs in their areas aren't being met. 

For example, nursing clinical directors are only on the maybe list, as are auditors and accountants and management accountants. This is despite a shortage of auditors at the moment alongside rising insolvencies. 

Jobs and Skills Australia was created by the Albanese government, tasked with filling skills shortages across the economy. One of the professions also rejected in its draft list is the role of economists. 

Given some of the strange decisions highlighted above, coupled with the economic challenges Australia is facing during this cost of living crisis, perhaps excluding economists is also an odd decision.