AT least five children were among 10 or more people drowned after a fishing boat overloaded with asylum-seekers capsized off the Java coast yesterday morning.

The Labor government has finally after a decade abandoned its on shore only processing policy and recognizes that off shore processing is required. As the government of the day, it is solely responsible for providing the best policy that it is capable of.

Given that the high court has sunk the Malaysian solution, and that the only legislation that Labor can get passed would only allow the pacific solution, the only options the government has open is on shore processing or Nauru, the least worst option open to them is Nauru.

It is the duty of the government of the day to implement the best option available to them at the time. Their failure to do so for political reasons is a dereliction of duty.

As Scott Morrison has stated:

"This is not a time for politics."

Both the government and the Opposition are
being careful not to blame each other for
this tragedy or to try to make political
mileage out of it.

Both agree that the blame for this latest asylum seeker
tragedy lies with people smugglers.
Both also agree that - what is needed is the strongest
possible deterrant. Nauru is not it.

We can only hope that the government will succeed
in finding one to this complex problem that continues
to plague the governments of this country.

If this is not a time for politics when is it? When the idiotic pig headed Labour party policy leads to 1000 more deaths. How could they have stuffed up something so thouroughly? No doubt Abbott will again get the blame for the collosal failure of our PM.

Abbott is the blame, as Naru has not been through court. His non support says it all.

We Shadow Minister are a sadder country for this subject being miss used.
You here, Abbott by stopping question time today, thereby going back on his party's statement it was not to be politicized, shames us.
If you have followed this matter some truths exist.
one LABOR GOT IT WRONG IN STOPPING THE Nehru plan.
TWO East Timor failed to fly, two strikes against Labor.
Today, every single parliamentary sitting from the day it was announced, conservatives miss led the public and the house.
Saying the Malaysian scheme had failed, even openly, lying, giving figures of arrivals and INFERRING they came AFTER IMPLEMENTATION of a scheme, your mob never let start.
Labor failed yet again, confronted by what history will show, with no doubt, OPPOSITION PREPARED TO LIE CONSTANTLY.
Labor must confront your team, take the Nehru thing, after the advice given proves true, it no longer will work, Conservatives again own the failure.
I no doubt, upset some, but firmly warn Abbott, some of his team, are incapable of honesty and remote from the past of what was once a great party.
In time to come, lead by true LIBERALS ,it will be again , and no longer a branch of American Republican tea party spoilers.
Remember my words too remember your own this is to come true and many will wish to forget they ever thought of Tony Abbott other than a flim flam man.

Lexi,

Quoting Scott Morrison? A new one for you.

Notably the Labor party has already tried to point the finger at the coalition, so I have no problem continuing.

My point was that given the Malaysian solution is a non starter, the government has the choice between Nauru or on shore processing. Whatever the concerns Labor may express, it would certainly be far more effective than what they have now.

They have the choice to pass their legislation with the amendment, and in the highly likely event Nauru does not work, then they can legitimately pressure the coalition to go with the Malaysian solution.

The reality is that the 800 boat people quota for the Malaysian solution would have already been filled, and the Malaysian solution would be dead anyway.