Wyatt Roy (Longman, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am very proud to stand here tonight to speak on this important bill, the Australian Border Force Bill 2015, which builds on the government's significant achievements around border protection over the past almost 18 months. As a regular participant in the Australian Defence Force Parliamentary Program, I have seen the results first-hand. Last year, I spent a profound week on operations out of Darwin with the military and Customs personnel who protect Australia's borders and offshore maritime interests. These dedicated men and women are relieved to no longer be plucking the bodies of perished children, parents and grandparents from the ocean. I was moved as they recounted horrors that have taken a huge professional and personal toll. That the former Labor government put them in that position struck me as abhorrent. Indeed, those on the Left who claim to represent a humanitarian viewpoint have overlooked, ignored or forgotten that under the policies of the Labor and Greens government, more than 1100 people drowned while trying to reach Australia in leaky boats.

This government's border protection policies have not only save lives but have already saved $2.5 billion, which could, once the budget improves and the detention burden further reduces, be reinvested in our humanitarian program. So, clearly, the first border task of this coalition government has been—with the utmost efficiency—accomplished. We have stopped the boats. We have saved potentially thousands of lives—and certainly billions of dollars. However, border protection does not start and finish with nullifying illegal boat arrivals. We must now apply the lessons of our success with Operation Sovereign Borders to our broader border picture.

Ahead on the horizon for Australia's borders are some significant challenges. Over the next three years, air cargo consignments are expected to grow by 85 per cent, sea cargo will increase by 20 per cent and 25 per cent more international travellers will be headed to our shores. These additional movements come at a time when the threat of serious, organised transnational crime is bearing down like never before. Faced with these looming pressures, we are again determined to take the steps necessary to secure the integrity of our borders and, in so doing, protect the Australian people from those who seek to do us harm—protect them from all but legitimate trade, travel and migration factors critical to our diversity and the free market opportunities for which our economy is built. With this bill, we establish the new framework.

The key spoke in the reform is embedding the role of an Australian Border Force Commissioner, who will command a new, front-line operational border control and enforcement entity to be known as the Australian Border Force. In effect, we are consolidating and strengthening our border protection services into a single unit. This unit will in turn fit inside the merging of the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service with the Department of Immigration and Border Protection. The single, newly-integrated Department of Immigration and Border Protection will assume responsibility across customs controls, immigration laws and border protection.

The Australian Border Force Commissioner will be our most senior border law enforcement officer charged with leading our many highly-trained and field-proven officers in protecting and maintaining our borders. The wide-ranging team will encompass not only those who staff the air and sea borders at airports and ports, but also those who are involved in investigations, compliance and enforcement in respect of illicit goods and illegal visitors. This includes the management of detention facilities and the removal of noncitizens who do not have a right to stay in Australia. The commissioner will be afforded the same standing as other heads of key national security related agencies, such as the Commissioner of the Australian Federal Police and the Chief of the Australian Defence Force. The Australian Border Force Commissioner will also be the Comptroller-General of Customs, with responsibility for the enforcement of customs law and the collection of border-related revenue.

As I stated earlier, this bill will facilitate the full integration of the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service and the Department of Immigration and Border Protection into a single department. By removing the traditional silos of immigration and customs, the Australian Border Force takes a common sense approach that will improve capability and pull together border policies, strategy and operations to bring cohesion and focus. The concept of an integrated border authority is not a new one. We have seen successful applications of this in the United States and in the United Kingdom. With this bill, our modelling seeks to adopt the best of these experiences while remaining attuned to our unique geopolitical circumstances and challenges.

The Australian Border Force will also include staff serving beyond our borders. It is important to maintain these strategic operational roles with our regional partners to help secure Australia's maritime zone, to continue to prevent and deter illegal arrivals and to stop any influx of prohibited goods. The Australian Border Force will also work collaboratively with law enforcement and intelligence partners in jurisdictions both here and abroad. The success of Operation Sovereign Borders, which triggered the collapse in illegal boat arrivals and people no longer dying at sea, could not have occurred without the mutual sense of purpose, trust and information sharing between government agencies.

All of this enhanced capacity to meet the challenges of the future to secure our borders for future generations of Australians represents a considerable saving to the taxpayer. This is a once-in-a-generation reform in which the consolidation of the department of immigration with Customs and the establishment of the Australian Border Force is expected to generate $180 million in efficiencies over the forward estimates, increasing to $100 million each year after that.

We have a responsibility to the Australian community to deal with eventualities on our borders now. While border agencies perform an invaluable role today, current operations simply will not be sufficient to protect our border beyond 2020. Current separate agency arrangements will not deliver the most cost-efficient and sustainable approach into the future. These changes will ensure the right balance is achieved in maintaining the integrity of the Australian border while fostering legitimate trade and travel movements. The measures will also allow us to effectively deal with the speed and complexity of the future border protection environment. With this bill, the government is once again demonstrating our commitment to national security operations while building on our track record in regard to illegal boat arrivals.

Without this legislation, immigration and customs officers will not be in the best position to tackle the risks posed by mounting volumes of travellers, business entities and migrants in a world increasingly and tragically beset by insidious threats to our national security. As the government of the Australian people, we must do everything we can to stay ahead of crime syndicates and terror threats which would seek to penetrate our borders and weaken our harmonious and diverse culture. We are a society that promotes freedom and treasures the safety of communities.

When we came to government, we inherited what—it would be fair to say—was a very big mess on our borders. The process of bringing together government agencies and of developing an effective solution to deal with the challenges we face on our borders was not an easy journey to go on. I am somebody who has spent time serving with our customs and border force agencies in the north and seen the professional and personal toll that has been taken on individuals that have gone through this process. The bill that we have before us here tonight will make a very significant difference. It builds on the lessons that we have learnt throughout that important process. We owe it to the Australian people—and I want to thank the Labor members who spoke in support of this bill tonight—to implement the best possible reforms, so that we can ensure that the Australian border is protected for many years to come and that future generations of Australians can have trust in the security and integrity of the Australian border. For those reasons, I commend this bill to House. Debate interrupted.

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