Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for his question. I was asked about our forecast yesterday and provided a detailed answer. I said yesterday that our medium-term forecasts are based on actual arrivals. We take advice from security agencies, we look at the history of the issue and, as we go out further, we look at historical averages. I made the point very clearly yesterday that the government will do everything within its power to stop the people smugglers. But of course there is one roadblock in the way of that: those opposite, and particularly the Leader of the Opposition, have opposed key recommendations, that came to us through the Houston inquiry, to do more offshore processing—in particular in Malaysia. That is why I very clearly said yesterday that he is the best friend that people smugglers have ever had, because the opposition of those opposite sent a message to the region, and it was not a very good message at all.

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