New Zealand being ‘marketed’ as people-smuggling destination, Peter Dutton says

Peter Dutton warns that any tweaks in border policy could see asylum-seekers heading to Australia again.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern would not comment on specific intelligence briefings she had received. Picture: AP

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton says New Zealand is being “marketed and pitched” as a destination by people-smugglers, warning any tweaks in the border policy could see asylum-seekers headed to Australia.

Mr Dutton said the problem of people smuggling had not gone away despite illegal boats being stopped from coming to Australia about three years ago.

“The fact that we’ve stopped boats now for about three years doesn’t mean that the problem has gone away, the people smugglers just trade in people like they do drugs or tobacco, prostitution and drugs,” Mr Dutton told Sydney radio station 2GB.

“It is just a business line for them and if they think the Australian government has gone soft, or the policies have changed or that they look at a new way of getting to Australia, they will grab it with both hands.

“So we do have a concern about some of the comments we are hearing now from the people-smugglers and from the networks.”

Federal Immigration Minister Peter Dutton says the people-smuggling problem hasn’t gone away. Picture: AAP

The Australian reported this morning that asylum-seekers aboard a boat intercepted by a naval patrol just before Christmas had told immigration officials that smugglers had told them their destination was New Zealand. This followed the disruption by Sri Lankan authorities of two other people smuggling ventures destined for New Zealand.

Mr Dutton said there had been increased chatter among people smugglers about the option of New Zealand as a destination since Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern put pressure on Australia to allow it to resettle 150 refugees from Manus Island.

“We do know that’s being marketed, it’s being pitched to people as a destination,” he said.

He attacked Bill Shorten for saying there would be no difference between letting New Zealand and the United States take Manus Island refugees.

“New Zealand is the only country in the world where you can get into Australia and get a visa on arrival. that is the big difference,” he said.

“If they are convinced to pay their money to get to New Zealand, believing that they can’t in the first instance get to Australia, then they know if they can’t get there for a couple of years they can become a New Zealand citizen and they can cross over like any New Zealand citizen can into Australia.

“And that is the big difference that I don’t think Bill Shorten gets.”

Smuggling chatter ‘not unusual’

New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has defended making an offer to take 150 people seekers from Manus Island detention centre following Australian intelligence directly linking the deal to increased chatter among people-smugglers trying to sell New Zealand as a destination for asylum-seekers.

In a post Cabinet press conference earlier today Ms Ardern would not comment on specific intelligence briefings she had received but claimed that she had been advised that the recent people-smuggling activity was not “unusual”.

Ms Ardern’s comments appeared to contradict Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull who earlier today confirmed Australian intelligence reports that people smugglers had been “very busy in marketing and promoting New Zealand as a destination recently.”

“A number of boats, people-smuggling boats, that have been intercepted by our Operation Sovereign Borders, stated that they were planning to go to New Zealand, so that’s been the case,” Mr Turnbull said.

“New Zealand benefits from our Operation Sovereign Borders.

“The people-smugglers are absolutely ruthless. They use all of the social media we use and they use it very skilfully and market any scrap of information that they can and so they were very busy in marketing and promoting New Zealand as a destination recently.”

The Australian has confirmed that asylum-seekers aboard a boat intercepted by a naval patrol just before Christmas had told immigration officials that smugglers had told them their destination was New Zealand. This followed the disruption by Sri Lankan authorities of two other people smuggling ventures destined for New Zealand.

But Ms Ardern maintained that the offer she had made in November was a standing offer first made in 2013 and was “not new”.

“Chatter among people-smugglers has ebbed and flowed for many, many years … keeping in mind of course that Tampa was over 15 years ago so that’s not a new issue.

“I’m advised that none of the activity we have seen in recent times as unusual.

“I don’t want to comment on specific intelligence briefing and reports.”

Ms Ardern said New Zealand would continue to work alongside Australia to tackle people smugglers who she described as “parasites”.