Ann Corcoran (Isaacs, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Immigration) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In the few moments that are left of this debate tonight I would like to raise an issue that has been raised with me many times in my electorate, and that is the way visitors visas are managed. Very often a constituent will come into my office seeking assistance in getting a relative to come out to Australia to attend a family wedding or some sort of celebration to find that the visitors visa has a bond attached to it. When you make inquiries about which country these visitors are coming from and how much the bond is, there appears to be no particular pattern to all of this. There may well be very good reasons for the way all this is organised, but it is not clear and it is not transparent. I have put some questions on the Notice Paper to the Minister representing the Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs to see if we can unearth why this is, but many people in my constituency are feeling that the system is perhaps not being administered fairly and clearly. I think we need to have good strong look at this.

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! It being 9.30 pm, the debate is interrupted.