Concetta Fierravanti-Wells (NSW, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Immigration and Shadow Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Leader in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, my question is to the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Evans. Can the minister please tell the Senate how many unlawful entrants have arrived in Australia by boat since August 2008?

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I will add it up for you if you like, Senator, but this year we are at a figure of about 1,100, plus the most recent arrivals. As I say, these things are all on the public record. I make them available and provide as much information as I can. As the senator would well know, we have seen an increase in the number of arrivals in recent months. This is in line with international trends which show that the number of asylum seekers seeking protection in the world has risen considerably. Countries like the USA, the UK, Canada and Italy are all facing increased numbers of asylum seekers, much more in the order of tens of thousands than those we are seeing.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It’s good when you’re never to blame.

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Abetz says it is always good when you are never to blame. I suggest to Senator Abetz that he think about the proposition that somehow domestic policies are driving these arrivals. On that basis you would have to blame the Howard government for the 10,000 arrivals that occurred around 2001. That is the logic of your position. If you are not prepared to do that, then you have to re-examine your position. What happened following that period is that, when things settled in Afghanistan, people were able to be returned to Afghanistan. The large change that occurred was the capacity for people to return safely to Afghanistan, and the UNHCR started that process.

What this country is seeing at the moment is an increase in arrivals of people from Sri Lanka and Afghanistan, in particular, as a result of the worsening situation in those countries. It is an international problem. We are committed to international action to try and stem the people smugglers. We have invested more in border security than ever before, and we will continue the fight against people smugglers. (Time expired)

Concetta Fierravanti-Wells (NSW, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Immigration and Shadow Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Leader in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Since 2008, what has been the total cost of processing, housing and keeping these ‘about 1,000’ unlawful boat arrivals?

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I can take on notice the exact costings for Senator Fierravanti-Wells. No doubt she will be able to seek as much information as she needs at the next estimates hearing. I remind her that those costs are being met while we house people at the Christmas Island detention centre, built by the Howard government at a cost of $400 million.

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

A lot of the cost structures associated with the costs of housing people on Christmas Island are associated with the high costs of having to transport staff and goods to Christmas Island. Senator Minchin might well interject, but he was responsible when the huge blow-out in the costs of the centre occurred, when the costs almost doubled. Certainly, I can take on notice the details for Senator Fierravanti-Wells, but if the question is, ‘Is it expensive to house people at Christmas Island?’ the answer is yes.

Concetta Fierravanti-Wells (NSW, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Immigration and Shadow Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Leader in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. Now that the Christmas Island detention centre is nearing full capacity due to the ALP’s failed policies, what contingencies does the government have in place to accommodate the ever-increasing influx of boat people to Australia?

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

First of all, the premise of the question is wrong. With these latest arrivals, the capacity of Christmas Island will not be reached. In fact, with the new arrivals we will have fewer people there than we had a couple of months ago, given the processing that has occurred. But, as I have made clear in the past, extra capacity is being developed at Christmas Island and we also have the Northern Immigration Detention Centre at Darwin that is available if required. There are available facilities to us if we see larger numbers of arrivals. I have been the first to make clear to Senator Fierravanti-Wells that we are going to see continued people-smuggling activity in the near future. We are absolutely committed to combating it. We have had some successes, with the extradition of Mr Ahmadi. We are working closely with Indonesian, Malaysian and Sri Lankan authorities, but the battle against people smuggling continues and will continue to need to be waged strongly. (Time expired)