Christine Milne (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I appreciate the minister's answer. The Greens have been asking for an increase in the humanitarian intake, and we have said from the beginning that the government have had the power to do that all along and could have done it at any time, so I really welcome the fact that they are going to do it. That does not alter the premise of my question: if the minister's genuine interest is in the humanitarian welfare of refugees, why wouldn't we give them visas and allow them to fly in to have their refugee applications assessed? Isn't it true that deterrence is at the heart of this strategy?