Ms Julie Bishop (Curtin, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Acting Prime Minster. I refer to comments yesterday by the National Secretary of the Australian Workers Union, Paul Howse, about the surge in asylum seekers. I quote:

I think we should put out a red carpet and welcome them with open hands.

Mr Howse also said, ‘One man’s people-smuggler is another man’s liberation hero.’ Given the influence of the AWU at Labor’s national conference, will the Acting Prime Minster inform the House of what input, direct or indirect, Mr Howse has had into the government’s border protection policies?

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I genuinely thank the Deputy Leader of the Opposition for her question. The answer is none. Matters of policy for government are decided by the government. In deciding our border protection policies, what we determined to do was to be tough on border protection but to deal with people in a humane way. In putting that balance together, we have been very, very focused on dealing with people-smuggling. And, of course, as we deal with people-smuggling, we note that, despite the claims of the opposition to the contrary, the numbers of people moving around the globe have increased. The numbers of asylum seekers have increased.

Sharman Stone (Murray, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Dr Stone interjecting

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I see the shadow minister shaking her head, so I am going to take her to some basic facts. According to the UNHCR, at the end of 2008—

Ms Julie Bishop (Curtin, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order. The Acting Prime Minster answered the question. She said the AWU had no indirect or direct input into Labor’s policies; therefore, the question has been answered and I would ask that she sit down.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As speakers have indicated in the past, there is no way that the Speaker can actually dictate the way in which questions are answered. The Acting Prime Minster is responding to the question. The Acting Prime Minster has the call.

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It will take finer minds than mine to work out whether that is the worst performance the Deputy Leader of the Opposition has ever had, or whether the Keating quote was the worst performance the Deputy Leader of the Opposition has ever had. I will leave it to finer minds than mine to try and work out which was the silliest question. Once again, it may be a heroic assumption in relation to members of the opposition, but I am assuming that in one of these public policy debates of our time—namely, how the world deals with unauthorised people movement—people in the opposition will be interested in the facts. I am constantly being proved wrong, question by question, interjection by interjection—

Ms Julie Bishop (Curtin, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

That’s right.

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

And I am told, ‘That’s right.’ In a triumph of hope over experience, I am going to try and inject some facts into this debate in the hope that maybe the Leader of the Opposition, the Deputy Leader of the Opposition and others might grapple with the facts as they engage in the public debate about asylum seeking and people movement. Fact No. 1 in dealing with the question of how many people are moving around our globe: the UNHCR tells us that, at the end of 2008, the total number of refugees and internally displaced people under its care remains high at roughly 25 million—almost unchanged since 2007. So some sense that there has been a big drop-off is not right. Fact No. 2—and here we go, of course facts do not want to impinge on the opposition’s views—

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Mr Speaker, as you constantly say, there is only one point of order that deals with answers to questions, and that is relevance. The Deputy Prime Minister was asked a specific question about the influence that Paul Howse has over border protection policy—

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member will resume his seat. The question made reference to comments about a surge in asylum seekers. I call the Acting Prime Minster.

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Fact No. 2—and I will conclude on this, because I think it is important—is that the government has adopted an approach which is tough on boarder protection but humane to asylum seekers. On the question of protecting our borders—

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I know that these facts might not suit the opposition, who are catcalling now. On the question of the facts, since September 2008, 82 disruptions of planned smuggling ventures to Australia by Indonesian national police, involving around 1,497 persons, have occurred. That is 82 disruptions. Since September 2008, the AFP has charged 48 people with people-smuggling offences under the Migration Act. We are aware of the detention by the Indonesian navy of the person known as Captain Bram, who was involved in people-smuggling. This is evidence that the government is pursuing tough policies to protect our borders, whilst dealing with the question of asylum seekers in a humane fashion.