Labor frontbencher Kristina Keneally has accused Prime Minister Scott Morrison of dishonestly weaponising asylum seeker policy during the election campaign, defending her party’s credentials on border security against attacks from the Coalition.
Mr Morrison on Monday sought to revive a contest with Labor over the long-held political flashpoint, attacking its plan . He said Labor’s commitment to remove TPVs if elected showed they had learned “nothing when it comes to border protection”.
The prime minister has claimed the visas — which deny permanent resettlement to asylum seekers who came to Australia by boat — are a key plank of its border security policy.
But Ms Keneally said the visas no longer held a purpose because of Australia’s boat turnback policy, which both parties support.
She said Mr Morrison’s attempt to seize the policy divide was “just to distract from his own failures and incompetence”.
“If you attempt to come to Australia by boat you will not settle here - you will not get a temporary protection visa or any other visa,” she told reporters in Sydney.
“Mr Morrison says this is part of Operation Sovereign Borders, he is lying.”
Asylum seekers inside the Park Hotel quarantine facility in Melbourne on 6 January 2022. Credit: AAP
The visas have historically been directed towards asylum seekers who arrived by boat before July 2013 and who had not had their application finalised.
The policy has a complex history in Australia. It was abolished by then Labor prime minister Kevin Rudd in 2008 before being reintroduced by the Coalition in late 2013.
Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews said temporary protection visas remained a key part of the government's border protection policy.
“You can’t say that you support Operation Sovereign Borders if you don’t support temporary protection visas,” she told ABC RN.
Ms Andrews was asked to explain why the government believes TPVs are effective, considering they have primarily been allocated to people who arrived before Australia adopted a boat turnback policy.
“They are there to be a very, very strong deterrent,” she said.
“We need to make it very very clear that you will never settle here in Australia.”
The policy known as Operation Sovereign Borders began under the Abbott government in 2013 and involves naval vessels turning back unauthorised boat arrivals.
It has been combined with the use of offshore processing at facilities on Nauru and previously Manus Island in northern Papua New Guinea.
Temporary protection visas
TPVs allow people to stay for an initial three years but have long been criticised by advocates for creating uncertainty for those fleeing persecution, and also preventing family reunions.
Asylum seekers can also gain access to a so-called Safe Haven Enterprise Visa, providing people protection for up to five years, if they work or study in regional Australia.
Ms Keneally said the visa policy had resulted in people living in Australia for more than a decade, but still being required to reprove their refugee status.
“They have been living in the country for more than a decade - they work, they pay taxes, they run businesses, they employ Australians,” she said.
“Yet every few years these refugees have to go through another assessment process to what end - to what purpose - nothing except a waste of taxpayer money.”
Ms Keneally said the process had also resulted in the Department of Home Affairs being “clogged” and “backlogged” trying to keep up with these visa applications.
“Why because the Department of Home Affairs is assessing the protection claims of people the Liberal government already recognised as refugees,” she said.
Ms Andrews has insisted there is “logic” to the deterrent nature of the visa policy.
“Scrapping temporary protection visas is most likely to be used by people smugglers to say well that’s been scrapped and you can settle,” she said.
“The key part has to be the deterrent message.”
