Australia will keep deporting Kiwi criminals: Albanese

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Australia will continue deporting New Zealand citizens who commit crimes here, arguing it is in the national interest.

After meeting NZ Prime Minister Christopher Luxon on Friday, Albanese was asked by a reporter how he justified “contributing to New Zealand’s crime and gang problem with what effectively are Australian-grown criminals”.

New Zealand PM Christopher Luxon with Anthony Albanese in Canberra.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

“Notwithstanding the provocative nature of the tone in the question, what we have is an understanding that while we have common purpose, we do not have uniform positions, but we respect each other’s position,” Albanese said.

“[My job] is to look after our national interest. We say the safety of Australians is the No.1 consideration in the ministerial direction 110, but it also continues to apply common sense, a commonsense approach. It is all we try to bring to this and that is understood.”

Direction 110, which took effect in June, is designed to ensure the protection of the Australian community is prioritised by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal when it is considering whether foreign citizens who commit crimes here – even those with little connection to their country of origin and who were raised here, for example – should be deported.

It replaced ministerial direction 99, issued by former immigration minister Andrew Giles, which required the tribunal to give significant weight to a person’s ties to Australia when deciding whether to reject their visa and deport them. Direction 99 was blamed for the fact dozens of convicted criminals were released into the community rather than returned to their country of citizenship.

Before Friday’s meeting, Luxon told Nine’s Today show he would advocate for a return to the way deportations were considered under direction 99.

“We think that New Zealand people that are deported to New Zealand with very little or no connection to New Zealand isn’t sort of fair,” said Luxon, who has campaigned on reducing crime in NZ.

Joining Albanese for a joint press conference after the meeting, Luxon confirmed the pair had discussed the issue “with a focus on the commonsense approach ... that addresses people whose formative experiences were nearly all in Australia”.

The new direction still says decision-makers must consider the impact on a non-citizen’s family members and their connection to Australia when deciding whether they should be deported, but it gives less weight to those ties.

The Albanese government introduced direction 99 early last year after lobbying from the government of former New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern.

After its implementation, the tribunal reinstated the visas of a number of criminals who had committed child sex offences, as well as drug dealers and an alleged murderer. It prompted fierce criticism from the federal opposition.

A number of people with links to bikie gangs, including Dean Martin – a former Rebels bikie club president, CFMEU delegate and the uncle of star former Richmond footballer Dustin Martin – have also had their visas cancelled. Dean Martin, who is fighting deportation to NZ, has lived in Australia for three decades.

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