Michael Ronaldson (Victoria, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Veterans' Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on document No. 8, in relation to regional Australia. As honourable senators know, I am indeed a regional Australian and am proudly a Ballarat boy. The issues for all regional Australians go to the funding of services for roads, schools and hospitals and any policy that impacts on the ability of a government to provide those services is obviously a policy that should be carefully looked at. I do in that regard refer to the cost of Labor's failed border protection policies, given their ability or inability, being the sum of nearly $7,000 million. It is effectively a cost blow-out of the failed policies of both former Prime Minister Rudd and indeed Prime Minister Gillard. That is $7,000 million that could have gone into regional Australia. That is $7,000 million that could have gone into roads, schools and hospitals.

Indeed, the great concern in the great regional city of Bendigo at the moment is that the Labor Party candidate in Bendigo, Lisa Chesters, is actually advocating a return to onshore processing. I can see the look of absolute horror on my colleagues' faces when I tell them that she wants to return to onshore processing. Ms Chesters has said quite proudly that she is going to come and speak to every one of you on the other side in caucus and demand that you have onshore processing again. She is going to ride into Canberra and demand that you have onshore processing, so you are on notice that that is indeed what Ms Chesters is going to do.

The impact of that, as everyone in this chamber knows, will be absolutely diabolical. It will be an open-door policy for illegal boat arrivals into this country. It will open the doors up, and the only outcome of opening the doors up is further cost blow-outs. The only outcome of further cost blow-outs is reduced funding for regional schools, roads and hospitals. Ms Chesters, quite frankly, has to have a reality check, and if she does not know what her own party's policy in relation to this is then she should find out very quickly. When we passed some amendments to the act last year, her own leader, or potential leader, Ms Gillard, said:

Today the House has put in place arrangements for offshore processing. Today the House has done what the Australian people have wanted us to do for a long time.

That is Ms Chesters's own leader, the Prime Minister of this country. But no: Ms Chesters is going to march into Canberra if she gets elected and demand of caucus that you unwind what the Prime Minister acknowledges is what the Australian people have wanted us to do for a long time, and that is to have offshore processing.

This is irresponsible of the Labor candidate for Bendigo. It is grossly irresponsible for her to be suggesting that we return to onshore processing. It is grossly irresponsible for her to potentially open our borders even wider than they are at the moment—and I am sure honourable senators will be aware of what the recent figures are in relation to illegal boat arrivals: 31,000 people have arrived on 546 boats since the Labor party came to office, and $6.6 billion of taxes have been wasted on these boat arrivals. Ms Chesters needs to immediately withdraw her demand for onshore processing.