Daily Telegraph Editorial: MP’s scheme is a boat booster

Independent Wentworth MP Kerryn Phelps this week defended her proposal to allow the transfer of detained asylum seekers to Australia for medical reasons.

• Asylum seekers take advantage of legal system to block their return following treatment

Independent Wentworth MP Kerryn Phelps this week defended her proposal to allow the transfer of detained asylum seekers to Australia for medical reasons.

Speaking on the ABC’s Monday night Q&A program, Phelps claimed her proposal would not diminish Australia’s border protection integrity.

“It’s a medical solution to a medical problem,” Phelps said. “The government either wants to have humanitarian credentials or it doesn’t.”

Australians want to have secure borders, which many have argued would be weakened by the Phelps plan. Under her transfer idea, asylum seekers currently residing on Manus Island and Nauru would win the right for an Australian medical check if just two doctors support their applications.

Phelps claimed her proposal would not diminish Australia’s border protection integrity.

“It’s important to understand that Operation Sovereign Borders remains in place. This proposal doesn’t dilute border protection in any way,” the Sydney MP went on.

“The boat turnbacks will continue,” Phelps added. “That’s been the deterrent.”

Phelps does not see that any weakening of border protection invariably reignites the people smuggling industry. That is exactly what happened following Labor’s 2007 election victory.

The Member for Wentworth plainly doesn’t wish to examine the history of people smuggler activity in our region. Perhaps she will note the current state of affairs when it comes to medical transfers to Australia. As The Daily Telegraph reports, almost 900 boat people who have already come to Australia on medical transfers from offshore asylum seeker centres have never returned to Manus Island and Nauru.

They have remained here even after their medical treatment — sometimes for relatively minor health issues — has ended. The current system granting approval for transfers is reasonably strict. If it were to be reduced to a requirement from just two doctors, doors to Australia would be flung wide open. Judging by nearly 900 examples so far, once an asylum seeker is on our land they simply are never going back.

Kerryn Phelps, like the easily outwitted Rudd government, has little idea about the reality of people smuggling.

The health of asylum seekers would not be well served by any tactic that liberates amoral people smugglers to once again ply their deadly trade.

The big four banks rebounded on the stock market yesterday.

BANK RELIEF MAY NOT LAST

The broad sweep of the royal commission’s recommendations on banking reform has won support from government and opposition.

Now comes the difficult and exacting work of turning those recommendations into workable rules and guidelines.

A crucial aspect of that process will be to ensure transparency remains a top priority. In some cases, that may mean upfront customer fees where fees were previously buried in ongoing contracts.

This could seem as though certain changes are to the detriment of consumers when in fact they will be a financial benefit, if properly implemented.

The big four banks rebounded on the stock market yesterday, restoring $20 billion or 25 per cent of the value lost during the royal commission. This is considered a “relief rally”.

Any short-term stock market successes, of course, must be weighed against future costs to the financial sector as a result of the commission’s findings.

There will be substantial bills to pay, down the line.

And for once the customers will not be paying them.

The Daily Telegraph, printed and published by the proprietor, Nationwide News Pty Ltd A.C.N. 008438828 of 2 Holt St, Surry Hills NSW 2010, at 26-52 Hume Highway, Chullora. Responsibility for election comment is taken by the Editor, Ben English.