Anne Urquhart (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Before asking that the motion be taken as formal, I wish to inform the chamber that all opposition senators will sponsor the motion. I, at the request of Senator Keneally, and also on behalf of all opposition senators, move:

That the Senate—

a. notes that:

i. the Department of Home Affairs employs nearly 2000 dedicated and hardworking Australians to process visa applications across the country and the world,

ii. this is crucial work that ensures the integrity of our visa processing system and is the cornerstone of our sovereignty as a nation,

iii. the Federal Government’s plan to privatise Australia's visa system threatens the livelihoods of thousands of Australians and their families, and

iv. privatising Australia's visa system will lead to increased costs of visas, greater risks of worker exploitation, data security breaches and will make protecting national security more difficult;

b. condemns the Federal Government for auctioning Australian jobs off to the highest bidder, and for undermining the integrity of our visa processing system and our nation's sovereignty; and

c. calls on the Federal Government to guarantee the protection of the 2000 visa processing jobs which will be lost under the Morrison Government if they persist with their efforts to privatise Australia's visa system.