His comments are a direct response to Liberal Senator Cory Bernardi, who today suggested some of the12,000 asylum-seekers from Syria and Iraq could potentially be terrorists.
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"Why would we risk bringing in more to add to their ranks, even potentially, and bear the financial and social burden that comes with that?" Senator Bernardi asked on the ABC.
More than 800,000 refugees have been resettled in Australia since 1945. Mr Shergold said those coming as part of the increased intake will, just as others have, give back to the country in more ways than one.
"Through working - often through setting up businesses - some of them becoming major business leaders," he said.
"Their children are brought up in Australian schools and become great Aussies, become part of this wonderful ethnic diversity that is Australia."
For those tasked with the logistics of resettling thousands of new Australians, it comes down to basic necessities.
"Education and employment in particular have been the primary focus for us," said Paris Aristotle who chairs the Refugee Resettlement Advisory Council which today met in Canberra.
Some of the country's largest companies have agreed to give jobs to the 12,000 refugees which Tony Shepherd, the former head of the Business Council of Australia, says will help ease resettlement.
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"I don't think we're going to lack any enthusiasm from the business community - large, medium or small. It's just a question of getting the processes right to make sure that it's done properly," Mr Shepherd said.
