In an effort to reduce the barriers for people who wish to become Australian citizens, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's government has decided to commission a review of the citizenship test.
According to the Immigration Minister Chris Evans, a range of concerns were raised about the test, which was introduced last October by the previous John Howard government and many of the questions in the test reflected the attitudes of the former government.
"It's much more important that the test is of value when people seek to become citizens," he was quoted as saying by the The Australian newspaper.
"I think we can do a bit better than we have in some areas but.... We want to examine how it's actually working," he said, adding "Although feedback from participants to date has been positive, a range of concerns have been raised about the test and these will be addressed in the review."
Senator Evans said: "More work needs to be done to make sure the right questions are asked and there are no unintended barriers for people who wish to become Australian citizens."
Senator Evans said: "More work needs to be done to make sure the right questions are asked and there are no unintended barriers for people who wish to become Australian citizens."
Releasing a snapshot of the first three months of the test which showed 93 per cent of applicants passed on their first or subsequent attempt, senator Evans said test was being reviewed because some of the questions may be inappropriate.