A former Governor of the Reserve Bank thinks workers would be better off with a much lower level of immigration.

Economic data analysts Infometrics says changes to migrant numbers could undermine the economy's ability to grow, as businesses would no longer have the workers to increase production and output.

Don Brash told Andrew Dickens he agrees we need more skilled New Zealanders.

However, he said New Zealand's high rate of immigration means we have to spend a lot of our savings on houses, schools, roads and hospitals, rather than on capital per worker.

"That's one of the reasons our growth in productivity and therefore our growth in real wages has been so disappointing for so many years."

LISTEN TO DON BRASH SPEAK WITH ANDREW DICKENS