Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection) Share this | Hansard source

The people of Australia know this. The people of Australia know that Labor was hopeless when it came to border protection. The Abbott government is putting money in. We are putting $630 million in. We are creating a secure border, which is absolutely integral for the defence of our country and for the way in which we can stop the boats and protect Australians from attack. We need to make sure that, through a new agency, we can establish the Australian Border Force, which will bring together the collective energies of our Customs and Immigration officials to ensure that we can address all the threats that deliver to our borders every day.

The ABF will be a single integrated front-line operational border entity within the department that is charged with enforcing customs and immigration laws and protecting Australia's borders. The establishment of the ABF ensures that Australia has the capability at the border to manage this growth effectively and efficiently. The bill also introduces important integrity measures to ensure the support of management and to make sure that we have a professional and disciplined workforce that exercises its powers and functions with the highest standards of integrity. The integrity measures will increase resistance to criminal infiltration and corruption and will enhance government and public confidence.

The reform also delivers important law enforcement and national security capability to stay ahead of the transnational and organised crime syndicates that seek to exploit any weaknesses in Australia's border arrangements. It is only a coalition government that can be trusted to secure Australia's borders. Why do I say that? Because history records that to be fact.

See this speech in context