Andrew Nikolic (Bass, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

The member for Corio has the audacity to bring on this MPI, despite his role as a member of the former government that dismantled border protection policies which work. Well may he leave the chamber, because that was a shameful dismantling. There were 50,000 arrivals, over 800 boats, 1,100 deaths at sea and a blow-out of $11.6 billion in border protection costs. The member for Corio talks about a time warp. I know that we have recently celebrated the 50th anniversary of Dr Who. Perhaps the member for Corio is hoping that Australians will be transported back in time to pre-2007, when we had good governance and we did not have a boat problem. I think that is a forlorn hope.

The opposition simply does not understand that stopping people smuggling is not about providing daily media opportunities. Information released into the public domain is simply used by people smugglers and their agents in Australia to dupe desperate people into embarking on that perilous and often fatal voyage on the high seas. This is about a sensible, prudent, compassionate but, above all, resolute and consistent approach to managing this problem, in concert with our friends in Indonesia and other countries.

Yes, we are dealing with people—poor, desperate people—but we are also dealing with a multimillion dollar, sophisticated international criminal organisation that trades in people's lives. The way to prevent crime is very simple: it is to attack those who are the masterminds, and the masterminds here are the people smugglers. Is the shadow minister for immigration so naive as not to appreciate that these people have the most sophisticated communications networks? Does he not realise that every piece of information given out by an Australian government is quickly used by them to attract more customers?

I have had the privilege of serving this country abroad in some of the places from where these people come. The people smugglers go to their villages and towns and directly promote their evil trade. They use public commentary and spin to attract more unsuspecting customers. The government will be accountable for our policies, and the success of this policy to date is evidenced, as we heard, by the fact that in the first eight weeks of this government compared to the last eight weeks of the former government there has been an almost 80 per cent reduction in boat arrivals.

But the former government, of which the member for Corio was a senior minister, should also be accountable for their failure in the same area. If Labor had a shred of credibility on this issue some people might listen to them, but they do not. Perhaps they should give the government, the ADF and the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service the opportunity to tackle this people-smuggling trade unhindered. I would encourage the member for Corio and his colleagues to reflect on the reasons why governments and agencies like Defence and the department of foreign affairs necessarily protect information. He should reflect on Australia's dimensions of national power, its diplomacy, the informational element of national power, the economic element of national power and, in extremis, the military element of national power.

Good governments do not run thrice-daily news conferences to crow about how they are exercising their elements of national power, because to do so subverts their ability to achieve diplomatic, informational, economic and military effects.

As someone with experience in operational security matters, I can tell you that the reason we do not follow the former Labor-Greens government lead in this regard is that we are determined to protect the integrity of our operations. The member for Greenway demonstrated no understanding of how inter-agency operations are conducted—with the lead agency and supporting agencies. I suggest that she look at that framework. As we have heard from Lt Gen. Houston, running complex, multi-agency military operations is first and foremost about achieving your mission and ensuring the safety and the force protection of our troops. It is about denying information to our adversary and cycling through the decision process faster and more thoroughly than they do.

The member for Kingsford-Smith invoked the name of our troops in Afghanistan. I have served in Afghanistan. Lt Gen. Angus Campbell was recently the commander in Afghanistan. My daughter has done two tours of Afghanistan and every one of the people who has served there would tell him that operational security matters. Those on that side of the House should realise it, and let us get on with fixing the problem they have created.

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