The Multicultural Tamworth chairman also sent a strong message to those concerned about the Syrian refugee issue, that if they wanted action they could sponsor refugees themselves, as others in the community have been doing.

Mr Whitham said “12,000 is nothing – that’s about one person for every two thousand people in Australia”.

“The government announced before July, they’re going to move all the 32,000 boat people to the countryside and the NSW Premier said he’ll take 8000,” he said.

Many who could come will be professionals and skilled people, so country towns should put the skills to use.

Mr Whitham said he’d like to see some social security money used to help resettle safe-haven visa holders, and tosubsidise Tamworth’s small businesses to employ some of the refugees coming to settle in Tamworth.

Tamworth had settled refugees since 1978 and there were families here but many Tamworthians didn’t know they were here.

“Housing is not a problem, medical is not a problem, schooling is not a problem,” he said.

The council should tell the government the city can take people but we do need help with support services.

“The biggest thing is not the material. It is not anything more than people helping people,” he said.

“There could be 200 safe-haven visa holders in the city right now.       What people don’t realise is that if we dispersed these people around town, they wouldn’t even know. People of the country should be saying thank you for letting the people come.”

Mr Whitham said people who were “yelling at the government” about the situation could “put their money where their mouth is” and sponsor refugees to come just as churches, charities, councils and individuals have been doing in the past.

“We have had so many migrants over the past five years that the system is ready,” he said.