WEBVTT - A secret immigration scramble

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<v Speaker 1>You can listen to the Front on your smart speaker

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<v Speaker 1>the news from the Australian. From the Australian, here's what's

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<v Speaker 1>on the Front. I'm Claire Harvey. It's Tuesday, August thirteen.

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<v Speaker 1>Chatbots will be writing lesson plans and assignments in a

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<v Speaker 1>new Education Department trial, even as teachers are warned to

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<v Speaker 1>check the bot's answers. Australia could be left high and

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<v Speaker 1>dry on the nuclear submarine deal, with new treaty documents

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<v Speaker 1>revealing the US and UK can pull out with just

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<v Speaker 1>one year's notice if they decide it threatens their own

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<v Speaker 1>defense plans. That's an exclusive live now at the Australian

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<v Speaker 1>dot Com dot u. The government released dangerous non citizens

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<v Speaker 1>into the community with no visas and no way to

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<v Speaker 1>monitor them, and then misled the public about it. That's

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<v Speaker 1>an exclusive in The Australian Today and Today's Deep Dive

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<v Speaker 1>on the Front.

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<v Speaker 2>This is the issue that Anthony Albanez you wanted to

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<v Speaker 2>have off the agenda, but it is back to haunt

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<v Speaker 2>the government and the new Minister for Immigration and Home

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<v Speaker 2>Affairs Tony Burke.

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<v Speaker 1>The issue is illegal immigration, boat people, border security, and

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<v Speaker 1>it's the soundtrack to the Labor parties nightmares.

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<v Speaker 3>Elements in the coalition's plan to stop the boats finally

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<v Speaker 3>and fully stop the boats, stopping the boats now, I'm

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<v Speaker 3>interested in stopping the boats. And why I'm interested in

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<v Speaker 3>stopping the bats.

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<v Speaker 1>We have to have the will we are going to

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<v Speaker 1>stop the boats. Ever since they lost the twenty thirteen

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<v Speaker 1>election to Tony Abbott in large part because of a

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<v Speaker 1>surge in unauthorized maritime arrivals, Labor has a long term

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<v Speaker 1>case of the hebegbs about border integrity coming back to

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<v Speaker 1>bite it, and in November twenty twenty three it really did.

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<v Speaker 1>The immigration laws have been shaken up by a High

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<v Speaker 1>Court ruling.

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<v Speaker 4>For the last twenty years, the Australian government has been

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<v Speaker 4>able to detain non citizens who don't have a valid

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<v Speaker 4>visa or any prospect of deportation, but the High Court

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<v Speaker 4>has ruled that process is unlawful.

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<v Speaker 1>The test case at the center of that monumental High

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<v Speaker 1>Court decision can be named only as enz Yq. He

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<v Speaker 1>arrived by boat aged about sixteen in twenty twelve, at

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<v Speaker 1>the height of the influx of boat Enzedyq is from

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<v Speaker 1>Myanmar's persecuted Rohinja community. After arriving in Australia and being

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<v Speaker 1>granted a temporary visa, he sexually assaulted another Rowhinja refugee,

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<v Speaker 1>a ten year old boy. Enzedyq has served a prison

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<v Speaker 1>term for that offense, but on his release from jail,

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<v Speaker 1>the government deemed him not a legitimate refugee. He had

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<v Speaker 1>committed a serious criminal offense, which deemed him ineligible for

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<v Speaker 1>Australian citizenship, but when they tried to send him back

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<v Speaker 1>to Myanmar, he refused to go. The government held Enzedyq

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<v Speaker 1>in immigration detention at Sydney's Villawood Center, and the High

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<v Speaker 1>Court ruled that was illegal. The court said if a

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<v Speaker 1>non Australian citizen is refusing to go back to their

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<v Speaker 1>country of origin, Australia cannot hold them in indefinite detention.

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<v Speaker 1>That decision also freed another one hundred and fifty detail

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<v Speaker 1>and ease, including some serious offenders, murderers and rapists. For

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<v Speaker 1>most of the year, it's been a rolling disaster in Parliament.

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<v Speaker 5>Being an immigration detainee and child sex offender released by

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<v Speaker 5>the High Court. Has been arrested in Dandignong, accused of

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<v Speaker 5>using social media to contact children.

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<v Speaker 3>This is the reality of the High Court's decision. The

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<v Speaker 3>government did not choose to be in order positions.

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<v Speaker 1>Last month, Anthony Albanesi demoted the two ministers in charge,

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<v Speaker 1>Home Affairs Minister Claire O'Neil and Albanesi's old friend, Immigration

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<v Speaker 1>Minister Andrew Giles. The PM installed Tony Burke in their

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<v Speaker 1>place to try and resolve this issue before the next election,

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<v Speaker 1>due by September twenty twenty five.

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<v Speaker 2>Claire Well, I think what it shows is that you

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<v Speaker 2>can change your front bench, you can change the minister,

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<v Speaker 2>but it doesn't mean the political problems go away.

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<v Speaker 1>Joe Kelly is The Australian's National Affairs editor.

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<v Speaker 2>So we've got a new minister in the Immigration and

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<v Speaker 2>Home Affairs portfolio, and Tony Burke, but he still has

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<v Speaker 2>to clean up the mess that Andrew Giles left behind.

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<v Speaker 2>There are new questions about the government's response, and in

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<v Speaker 2>particular some of its claims at the time that all

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<v Speaker 2>the people who were released from immigration detention were subject

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<v Speaker 2>to strict visa conditions.

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<v Speaker 3>All of those who have been released from detention have

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<v Speaker 3>been granted and are on visas with appropriate conditions.

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<v Speaker 2>There are new documents which now question those claims and

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<v Speaker 2>in particular some of the statements that mister Giles made

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<v Speaker 2>to Parliament last November, just days after the landmark High

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<v Speaker 2>Court decision, And now Tony Burke is left in the

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<v Speaker 2>invidious position of having to deal with all of that.

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<v Speaker 1>Labor suffers from a bit of intergenerational trauma on asylum seekers,

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<v Speaker 1>boat people, border integrity. Their hearts must sink when they

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<v Speaker 1>see questions on this topic coming from you Joe across

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<v Speaker 1>their email.

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<v Speaker 2>Well, it's just a distraction for them at this stage.

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<v Speaker 2>They really don't want to be talking about this. This

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<v Speaker 2>is just bringing up negative stories from the past that

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<v Speaker 2>they don't really want to have to deal with.

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<v Speaker 1>Back in May, when the government was really floundering around

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<v Speaker 1>on this issue, Andrew Giles, the then Minister, said this

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<v Speaker 1>on Sky News.

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<v Speaker 3>There is a quarter of a billion dollars that we've

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<v Speaker 3>invested in supporting our law enforcement agencies to enforce that

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<v Speaker 3>and that's enabled things like using drones to keep track

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<v Speaker 3>of these people.

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<v Speaker 1>We know where they are drones monitoring the people who'd

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<v Speaker 1>been released by the High Court. Australia's military doesn't even

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<v Speaker 1>have a functional drone fleet. Who knew the Immigration Department

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<v Speaker 1>and had eyes in the sky appeering in the bedroom

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<v Speaker 1>windows of High Court Amansipees. Turns out that was completely wrong.

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<v Speaker 1>There were no drones, no drones at all, and Giles

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<v Speaker 1>had to admit it.

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<v Speaker 3>I relied on information provided by my department at the time,

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<v Speaker 3>which has since which has since been clur of members

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<v Speaker 3>on my land.

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<v Speaker 1>Today Joe is revealing documents obtained by the Coalition under

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<v Speaker 1>freedom of information laws that show what was really going

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<v Speaker 1>on in the background as the Minister was on his

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<v Speaker 1>feet in Parliament.

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<v Speaker 2>What we have uncovered a number of documents under freedom

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<v Speaker 2>of information laws and these are submissions that the Department

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<v Speaker 2>made to the then Minister Andrew Giles. So we have

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<v Speaker 2>eight submissions from the Department to Andrew Giles between November

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<v Speaker 2>ten and November sixteen, and it's apparent from these submissions

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<v Speaker 2>that there are individuals who have been released into the

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<v Speaker 2>community following the NZYQ decision and are residing in the

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<v Speaker 2>community as unlawful non citizens. And in each of these submissions,

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<v Speaker 2>mister Giles is being asked to transition a cohort of

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<v Speaker 2>people onto bridging visas. So it becomes clear that following

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<v Speaker 2>the nzed YQ decision very quickly, large numbers of people

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<v Speaker 2>were released from immigration to tens into the community at large.

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<v Speaker 2>They were not placed on appropriate visas with strict conditions

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<v Speaker 2>and the Government had to subsequently, after the fact of

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<v Speaker 2>their release, transition them onto bridging visas.

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<v Speaker 1>Joe asked the government detailed questions about this, and New

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<v Speaker 1>Minister Tony Burke said simply, the Government doesn't want these

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<v Speaker 1>people in the community at all and will put restrictions

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<v Speaker 1>on them to the maximum extent allowed by the law.

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<v Speaker 1>Burke didn't explain why they only granted the visas after

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<v Speaker 1>allowing the detainees out of custody. The consequences of the

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<v Speaker 1>High Court decision are still flowing. An Eritrean man who

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<v Speaker 1>was convicted of violent stabbing, assaults, threatening to kill and

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<v Speaker 1>arson is now in the High Court seeking to avoid

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<v Speaker 1>the surveillance conditions. Lawyers for the man say wearing an

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<v Speaker 1>ankle bracelet and having a nightly curfew are an infringement

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<v Speaker 1>on his liberty. That stories live now at the Australian

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<v Speaker 1>dot com You so will Immigration decide yet another election

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<v Speaker 1>will be back after this break? So Labour's dealing with

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<v Speaker 1>today's crisis in immigration as well as a rolling disaster

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<v Speaker 1>where it's been trying and failing to deport other non

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<v Speaker 1>citizens who commit crimes here in Australia. So I asked Joe,

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<v Speaker 1>Labor just keeps taking the hits on immigration and border protection.

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<v Speaker 1>The party has done years of soul searching on this issue.

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<v Speaker 1>Where does Labor actually stand now?

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<v Speaker 2>I think that there's been a bit of a road

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<v Speaker 2>to Damascus moment for Labor over the last fifteen years.

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<v Speaker 2>On border protection, we had the dismantling of the Howard

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<v Speaker 2>government's tougher position under the former Rudd and Gillard governments

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<v Speaker 2>where we saw so many boats coming to Australia, and

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<v Speaker 2>of course the tragedy of that was that so many

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<v Speaker 2>people unfortunately lost their lives. So I think there was

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<v Speaker 2>a debate over what truly is the most compassionate and

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<v Speaker 2>humane policy. I think Labor initially thought we need to

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<v Speaker 2>have a compassionate and humane policy and we're not going

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<v Speaker 2>to agree to these tough border protection measures. But I

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<v Speaker 2>think what essentially we've seen when Labor was trying to

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<v Speaker 2>get back into government that they decided that actually it

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<v Speaker 2>is humane, it is compassionate to have a tougher approach

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<v Speaker 2>on the borders, because we're essentially stopping people risking their

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<v Speaker 2>lives coming to Australia in these leaky boats. And so

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<v Speaker 2>one of the political questions that arises from that, clear

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<v Speaker 2>I think, is is this road to Damascus moment for

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<v Speaker 2>Labor on border protection genuine or is this just something

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<v Speaker 2>that they said and they're going through the motions with

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<v Speaker 2>because they knew they needed to do that to win

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<v Speaker 2>and stay in government. So there are questions about Andrew

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<v Speaker 2>Giles as true convictions in this regard, also to an extent,

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<v Speaker 2>Anthony Albanezi as well. So it's a tricky issue for

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<v Speaker 2>them and obviously there's a lot of people in their

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<v Speaker 2>base and on the left wing of the party who

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<v Speaker 2>don't like this move to the center that Labour's undergone

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<v Speaker 2>over the last several years on this particular issue.

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<v Speaker 1>The other big trial raging at the moment is, of course,

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<v Speaker 1>Linda Reynolds versus Brittany Higgins in the WA Supreme Court

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<v Speaker 1>on Tuesday. Scott Morrison's in the witness box. You can

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<v Speaker 1>follow it live at the Australian dot com dot Au