Abbott's 'No' vote aiding people smugglers
Wednesday, 20 June 2012
Joint media release with Chris Bowen MP - Minister for Immigration and Citizenship and Jason Clare MP - Minister for Home Affairs, Minister for Justice and Minister for Defence Materiel.
The 55th and 56th boats since Tony Abbott rejected working with the government to implement offshore processing were intercepted today.
The Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Chris Bowen MP, and the Minister for Home Affairs, Jason Clare MP said the boat arrivals were yet another consequence of the Coalition's refusal to put the national interest ahead of their own political interests.
'Tony Abbott and Scott Morrison are helping people smugglers to ply their evil trade by refusing to vote for offshore processing,' Mr Bowen said.
'It's all cheap politics and tough talk on boat arrivals, but no action - and the people smugglers know that.'
Mr Bowen said as the government had warned countless times that without a genuine deterrent in place - such as the Malaysia Arrangement - more boats would continue to arrive.
'The reason we cannot implement offshore processing is because of Tony Abbott's destructive negativity - he even rejected his own Nauru policy,' he said.
Mr Clare said it was time for Tony Abbott to stop voting against offshore processing.
'We have a solution. It is called offshore processing. Tony Abbott is stopping it being implemented,' Mr Clare said.
'If Tony Abbott is really concerned about people smugglers give us the power to put them out of business. No one will pay them $10 000 to be sent back to Malaysia.
'Tony Abbott knows this - he wants more boats to come because he thinks it will mean more votes for him. That is why he is stopping the government from passing laws to put people smugglers out of business.
'We can stop this now. Tony Abbott just has to stop opposing laws that will put the people smugglers out of business.'
URL: http://www.minister.immi.gov.au/media/cb/2012/cb187803.htm
Last update: Wednesday, 20 June 2012 at 17:10 AEST