Josh Burns (Macnamara, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's been almost two years since Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa were removed from their home in Biloela, almost two years of locking up two defenceless little girls. This family was dragged in the middle of the night to the Christmas Island detention centre. This year, Kopika will be turning five and her little sister Tharunicaa will be turning three. They are young girls who are being robbed of a childhood. Surely we can be big enough to accept that they should be brought home to Australia. Surely we can be big enough to accept that we are wasting millions of taxpayers dollars on a family that poses no risk to anyone. Surely at a time like this, when businesses and the economy are struggling, the government should be using every inch of the budget to help Australian businesses, and not on this expensive and cool exercise.

We all remember that after the medevac bill the Prime Minister launched a fear campaign and budgeted $185 million to open the Christmas Island detention centre. But locking up a family like this is un-Australian. It goes against the Australian value of looking after one another, especially children. It's time to stop wasting billions of dollars and it's time to bring this family back to Biloela where they belong. This family was contributing to a regional town. These people were doing good work inside the Australian community. These kids have known only detention. It's time to bring this family home.