Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Immigration) Share this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Lundy. Can the minister confirm that five years ago, when the Howard government left office, the arrival of people on illegal boats had effectively been stopped and that there were only four people in detention who had arrived illegally by boat? Can the minister also confirm that now more than 2,000 illegal entrants are arriving on boats each month and that there are more than 12,000 illegal entrants in detention? Can the minister also advise the Senate about what policies the government pursued to achieve this outcome and whether, upon sober reflection, it now considers those policies to have been a complete failure?