The problem of economic and social support for the dependant sectors of the Australian population in the future is addressed through consideration of recent national and regional population projections in relation to dependency theory. The level of immigration required to prevent the dependent sectors growing unduly at the expense of the productive is shown to be significant and this is complicated by high unemployment, and the issue of how many immigrants that can continue to be absorbed into the workforce. The contribution of suburban development trends, with their often wasteful provision of services at the local level in the longer term, as the result of regional demographic change, is seen to exacerbate the problems at the national level. -Author

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