Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Immigration and Border Protection) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Johnston for his question. We on this side of the chamber understand that the first priority of a government is to ensure the nation's security and defence. We also understand, as do Australians, that a government that cannot control our borders cannot control national security. Governments need to have strong border protection policies. The Australian people understood this when they overwhelmingly voted for the Abbott coalition government at the last election. And the implementation of Operation Sovereign Borders is a testament to the fact that this government has delivered on its promise to the Australian people. The results of Operation Sovereign Borders speak for themselves. We have stopped the boats. It has been over 300 days since there was a successful boat arrival to Australia. We have stopped the deaths at sea, and we are getting children out of detention. Unlike those opposite, who have done a lot of talking in relation to children in detention, it is those of us on this side of the chamber who have got children out of detention.

We also understand the importance of ensuring that our front-line services are properly resourced so that they can undertake their jobs properly. This is something that the former Labor-Greens government failed to understand. Labor, when in government, made budgetary cuts to Customs of $734.8 million, resulting in the shedding of 700 staff. This government, on the other hand, has restored the funding to our front-line services. We have provided a $630 million package, announced by the Prime Minister, as part of our counter-terrorism response. We have also provided Customs with $49.6 million to establish a Border Force Counter-Terrorism Unit. We on this side understand the importance of border security, and we understand that this ensures the security of our nation.