20th Jun 2018, 6:02 PM – Senate Motions - Immigration Detention - Labor should clarify position

The majority voted in favour of a motion introduced by Australian Conservatives Senator Cory Bernardi, which means it succeeded. Motions like these don’t make any legal changes by themselves, but they can be politically influential because they represent the will of the Senate.

Motion text

That the Senate—

(a) notes that the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Shorten, was quoted in the Guardian as saying, "We don't believe that mandatory detention has the necessary result of stopping the boats";

(b) also notes that the Deputy Leader of the Opposition, Ms Plibersek, said that detainees on Manus Island "should not be there, nor should the people on Nauru";

(c) further notes that the Member for Grayndler, Mr Albanese, voted at the last ALP National Conference to oppose asylum seeker boat turn-backs, and in May this year told ABC radio "You can be tough on people smugglers without being weak on humanity";

(d) in addition, notes that the Member for Batman, Ms Kearney, said in her maiden speech on 21 May that "we must, as a priority, move the asylum seekers off Manus and Nauru";

(e) furthermore notes that the Member for Barton, Ms Burney, told Sky News on 23 May 2018, "I think there needs to be some sort of time limit" on offshore detention; and

(f) calls upon the Australian Labor Party to make clear to the Australian public – and particularly the voters of Perth, Fremantle, Mayo, Longman and Braddon – whether it supports the federal government's border protection policies.