Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Bowman for his question. I can inform the House that the cost of weakening our borders is high. It is very high because the cost to the budget of reopening Christmas Island, of transferring the detainees from Nauru and Manus to the mainland, and the administrative cost of implementing these changes, is $1.4 billion. That is not even taking into account the costs that will be incurred from new arrivals. If history is any guide, if Labor is allowed to inhabit the Treasury benches, there will be new unauthorised arrivals. The last time the Labor Party was in government, we saw 800 boats and 50,000 unauthorised boat arrivals. Eight thousand children ended up in detention and 2,000 children were in detention when we came to government. Tragically, more than a thousand people lost their lives at sea. Seventeen new detention centres were opened and there was a huge physical cost, emotional cost, and, of course, budgetary cost. The cost of Labor's failed border protection policies was $16 billion. Sixteen billion dollars could build 1,000 primary schools. That's more than 10 schools in each electorate of those opposite. In Hotham, Herbert, Braddon, Bass and Brand, you could have more than 10 primary schools if you didn't have the cost of Labor's folly when it came to borders. Sixteen billion dollars would build 100 new hospitals. That's a new hospital in every electorate of those sitting opposite.

In contrast to the Labor Party, we put in place strong border protection policies that have worked—policies that have stopped the boats; policies that have allowed us to close detention centres; policies that have allowed us to save lives; policies that have allowed us to take every single child out of detention. These are policies that have worked. These are policies that have made Australia safer. These are policies that Labor now wants to unwind.

See this speech in context