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

In commencing my remarks on this document, the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service 2010-11 annual report, may I say that, consistent with remarks that have been made by the shadow minister for customs and border protection, Michael Keenan, the coalition commends the bravery of the men and women of Customs and Border Protection command, Defence personnel, the Australian Federal Police and the many Christmas Island community members who rushed to assist during the SIEV 221 tragedy.

As a member of the Joint Select Committee on the Christmas Island Tragedy, I personally witnessed the treacherous location where the tragedy took place, and I have nothing but the utmost respect and admiration for those people who risked their own lives to save others as the events unfolded. The coalition has already stated on the record that it believes Customs and the AFP did the best job they could with the resources they had available to them on the day. The reality is, however, and it remains the case, that, whilst people smugglers continue to bring people to Australia illegally, a tragedy of this nature and of this scale could reoccur. Stopping people-smuggling is the only thing that will eliminate going forward the possibility of such a tragedy occurring again. However, unless there is a significant change in the current policies of the Labor government, as is noted in this annual report, in the years ahead 'enduring problems such as maritime people smuggling will remain'.

These problems will remain because, instead of taking decisive action to stop the boats, what we have seen under the former Rudd government and the current Gillard Labor government is that in the first two months of 2012 alone there have been 14 boats arrive—that is in just eight weeks—carrying 1,195 people. The tragedy is that, in relation to the current policies, those figures are actually despite the current heavy weather patterns that would normally deter people from travelling by boat in these conditions to Australia at this time of the year.

There is only one way to break the people smuggler models, and that is to introduce tough measures and send a message to the people smugglers that Australia will, just like under the former Howard government, no longer tolerate them exploiting vulnerable people in this way. Australians know what these tougher measures are. The sooner the Labor Party adopt the proven measures of the coalition—and those are the former policies of the Howard government—the sooner we can stop this evil trade, stop the exploitation of these vulnerable people and stop tragedies such as those that occurred with SIEV 221 and the Christmas Island disaster.

Unfortunately, the sad reality is that, because the Labor Party only ever had a political strategy when it came to allegedly protecting Australian borders, Australians are well and truly paying for Labor's failures. We know this because there has been—and this was revealed just the other day—a further budget blow-out in asylum seeker costs of $866 million. That is more than 25 per cent of last May's full-year expenditure forecast for this portfolio. We are only into February of 2012 and the government has already had to go cap in hand to the parliament and ask for additional money.

There is no doubt that Minister Bowen has vacated this policy space. Under these circumstances, I can only wish the good men and women of the border protection unit the very best in trying to protect Australia's borders with the limited resources they have. I seek leave to continue my remarks later.

Leave granted.