Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to support the amendments moved by the shadow minister, the member for Cook. I want to pay tribute firstly to those emergency service and defence personnel, who, it has already been noted as part of this debate, are doing their very best, doing their utmost to try and recover the best outcome as is possible in these very difficult circumstances.

I also want to acknowledge the people who have contributed to this debate in this chamber because there have been some heartfelt contributions. People are well and truly adequately reflecting the mood within the Australian public at the moment. The Australian public, like those on both sides of this chamber, want an end to the smuggling of people. That is the basic premise from which we all approach this debate. The words from my good friend the member for Stirling before gave a rare window into why there are such strongly held views, passionate views in this debate. The member for Stirling and others heard firsthand the experiences of those people who were involved at the coalface—what they faced when they went to the terrible scene and the way in which some survivors were plucked from the sea and some were not. Those stories will live with people forever.

This has not been the first case. There are many boats, undoubtedly, that have gone to the bottom of the ocean that we will never know about. That is why the coalition strongly believe that our position that we put to the parliament today—that we have consistently put to the Australian people over the course of the last 10 years—gives us the best capacity to strike a fatal blow to that people-smuggling model. That is why people have seen passion in this debate today.

Yes, no doubt the government believes the solution it is putting forward will achieve the same outcome. But the facts must conclude a different outcome. The facts are that when the Howard government had in place a model that involved a number of elements that have been well canvassed as part of this debate, it did reduced to a trickle at best the number of people who were arriving by boats illegally in this country. It is on that solid base of evidence that the shadow minister, with the support of the shadow cabinet and many professionals otherwise, has decided that our course of action says to the Australian people that we have the best chance of implementation and of successfully carrying out a policy that must be well executed.

What the Australian people must also ask themselves at the moment is this: despite the fact that both parties have good intentions, which party has the capacity to implement a change that will be for the betterment of not just this country but also for those people who are suffering in camps and in desperate situations across the world? This is a policy which has been well thought out. It is a compassionate and a balanced policy. The shadow minister for immigration has moved these amendments because he believes passionately, as the opposition does, in making sure that a country be signed up to the convention. That would afford a basic human right which is not present in what the government puts forward, and that is despite years of consistent belief in the opposite viewpoint held, and abandoned, by many as part of this debate. That is the key consideration for the Independents in this debate at the moment.

The key Independents, who will decide this vote, need to consider, as we ask the Australian people to consider, who has the runs on the board? Who has the capacity to implement the change that can restore integrity to the system? Who has the capacity to say to the Australian people that we have a better way forward? The fact is indisputable that a significant part of the government's actions in 2008 has led us to the position we are in today. That is why we implore the Independents to consider the position of the opposition and to support these amendments. (Time expired)

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