Nigel Scullion (NT, Country Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Hansard source

It is vary rare in this place when those on the other side throw taunts like ‘racist’ across the chamber. It is just as well because being attacked by those on the other side is like being attacked by dead sheep. I will ignore it on this particular occasion. They talk about compassion, about feeling and about being a caring country. Well that we are. We put in place an important sweep of policies to prevent people from seeing as a reasonable option putting their belongings, their family and their children upon a boat which had, at best, only a reasonable chance of making the voyage. That was a compassionate and thoughtful approach to policy. Perhaps it is difficult for those on the other side to defend their policy, which has failed absolutely. Labor quite often use the new term ‘evidence based policy’.