Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Evans. Can the minister confirm reports that a vessel containing up to 200 suspected asylum seekers is heading for Australia from Sri Lanka? Can the minister further confirm that an additional two suspected asylum seeker vessels arrived on Friday, making 139 boat arrivals under the Rudd government, 71 just this year?

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Clearly, the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, Senator Abetz, understands that I will not be confirming alleged reports of ships on the sea that may or may not be heading to Australia. Clearly, that is a question of intelligence and not something that he would expect me to discuss in the Senate, so I will not be confirming press reports—

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Abetz interjecting—

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator, I would have thought you would have understood, having been a minister of the Crown, that you would not expect—

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Very confidential? It is all over the media.

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Whether you would respond or not, I am telling you that this government will not be discussing the question of intelligence briefings to the government on sensitive national security issues and issues that may involve deployment of Navy and Customs vessels. Clearly, we will not be discussing those and I cannot think that you are serious in your question.

In terms of the second part of the question, the government is facing increased activity in unauthorised boat arrivals at this time. It is similar to three previous peaks in activity that this country has experienced over the last 35 years. The last one was between 1999 and 2001 when the Howard government had to deal with larger numbers of arrivals.

George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, on a point of order: the minister declined to answer the first part of the question. The second part of the question was directed only to the confirmation of two numbers. The minister has not addressed the second part of the question at all. He is merely being asked to confirm two figures.

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I believe the minister is answering the question. The minister has 31 seconds remaining.

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As I was saying, we have been in a period of time when we have seen an increased number of arrivals, similar to peaks in activity that we have had in previous years. As I said, the last peak was in the period 1999 to 2001—figures that the Liberal Party now deny and refuse to put in the graphs that they produce publicly. Amazingly, when they produce their material now everything starts at 2005. They have no pride in the first half of the Howard government’s era—no pride at all. (Time expired)

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Clearly, we will not get the answers. Let us try this: given the minister’s failure to tell us last week, will the minister confirm the Attorney-General’s advice to the House that on 11 June this year there were 508 children being held in detention? Was the Attorney right? Now, just 10 days later, how many more children are in detention?

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I find the opposition’s concern for children in detention breathtaking, because this is a newly found concern. Where were the opposition when they had 1,923 children behind razor wire in detention camps—not in community detention, not in alternative places of detention like with this government but locked up behind razor wire in camps. This is the Liberal opposition whose current policy is to bundle them all up, try to find a third-country island and send those children back into detention. That is your policy now: ship them off to a third country, find an island and lock those kids up again. This government proudly states, ‘We do not lock kids up in detention centres.’ As I indicated the other day, this attack is morally bankrupt. (Time expired)

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I ask a further supplementary question, Mr President. I note the minister’s refusal once again to answer the questions. Does the minister now deny that Labor’s policy is encouraging the criminal behaviour of people smugglers, who are luring these families onto rickety boats, putting children’s lives at risk and, to quote one of the minister’s most senior departmental officials, ‘exposing more people to danger’?

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I do not concede that at all and I do not think that the opposition have any credibility in this regard—no credibility at all. Since announcing the harshest policy announced by any political party in Australia a few months ago, they have sought to regather some ground in arguing about compassion—that their policy is really about trying to help children. This is really about trying to be compassionate but, yes, we will put them on TPVs; yes, we will restore the Pacific solution; and, yes, we will lock children up on remote islands that are not even in Australian territory. That now is your policy. It is funny—I turned up the other day to do an Insight program on SBS to debate the Liberal Party spokesman. He did not turn up. Guess who they sent? That is right: Phillip Ruddock. Not only have they got his old policy, but he is now the spokesman. That is how low the Liberal Party have again sunk. (Time expired)