Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

To the member who asked the question: No. 1, he came into this parliament and voted for more boats; No. 2, this government will always take the steps necessary to protect our borders, and we do. We, in doing that, sought advice from three experts: the former chief of the Defence Force, who will know more about protecting the national security of this nation, more in his little finger, than the member who asked the question ever will across the whole of his working life; we received advice from the former chief of the Defence Force. We received advice from a refugee expert. We received advice from a highly respected foreign affairs professional, Michael L'Estrange. And we, on this side of the parliament, said, 'Let's enact that advice.'

The member who asked the question, along with his colleagues, voted to see more boats because they thought that was in their political interest. And, having voted to see more boats, they are now in this overwhelming chaos about what to do or say next. So we have the Leader of the Opposition out there saying to the Australian people that if he is ever elected he will stop all of the boats in a number of months—he has given estimates of a number of months. Then the member who asked the question more wisely says, 'Well, you know, well, it might be, well, you know, sometime, sometime, sometime'. They are in chaos on that side of the parliament, because they know that, between the Leader of the Opposition and the shadow minister, they have no coherent policy on refugee and asylum seeker issues, and no coherent policy on protecting our borders.

Instead, what they do is go around using terminology designed to incite fear. Just like for carbon pricing, this is a disreputable tactic which reflects very badly on the Leader of the Opposition. And we know that the tactics of the shadow minister have been so nauseating that even his own backbenchers stood up and said that they cannot stand them.

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