Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator Fawcett. I saw the comments of Mr Burgess on this matter on the Insiders program, and I'm sure you can go and have a look at them yourself. He explained the approach of our national security agency to people who have expressed views about Hamas. Again, we respect the advice of our security agencies and people like Mr Burgess, and we act on that advice, so I'm confident that ministers will act in accordance with that advice when those decisions are required.

I also saw Mr Burke, the incoming home affairs minister, make the very obvious point that Gaza is a war zone. People were provided with tourist visas initially in order to get them out of a conflict zone quickly after security checks had been undertaken. It is unrealistic to think that it is proper or safe to return people to a conflict zone like Gaza, which is why further consideration is being given to their status going forward.