Ken O'Dowd (Flynn, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

It is a shame. That means 13,745 people arrived this financial year versus 13,584 under the 11½ years of the Howard government. This Labor government's border protection failure has now cost Australians over $5 billion—and $2½ billion in the last 12 months.

There are currently around 14 million refugees waiting in camps all over the world. We know we have an obligation to the world or to the United Nations to take our fair share of these refugees. However, we also have an immigration policy where you come through the front door. People in my electorate are asking me, 'Why can't they come through the front door? Why can't they be like anyone else and when they come to Australia get a job and work—not be banned from working—and become part of Australian life? Why should they receive more benefits than our pensioners, who have worked all their lives and are now on a very meagre pension? Why are the boat people better off than our pensioners?'

In 2010 the number of legal offshore places was reduced by 2,000 people. What we did to make up for those extra 2,000 people who wanted to come but were not allowed to come because there were too many boat people was to have those 2,000 places taken up by families of the people who illegally came here. So that is not a very fair system, either.

We have spent this money, and what have we gained as a nation? We have helped some people but we could have helped them if they had come through the front door. I cannot emphasise that enough. We have clearly lost control of our borders.

Labor has walked away from a budget surplus. As we all know, they promised 650 times that there was going to be a surplus budget. But the day they walked away from their budget they walked away from border control also, because it was costing the budget well over what was estimated, and it helped throw the figures out. As we go on, future budgets have a decrease in what illegal immigration is going to cost us. It comes down from $2½ billion a year to $400 million in two years time. What whiz kid came up with those figures? How did he get to those figures?

See this speech in context