Ammonite,
I would be willing to gamble on community based processing, no walls nor razor wire, just let them all in.
Things would become so bad in the suburbs that in pretty short order we'd have a new government, the refugee convention would be abandoned and we'd be deporting "refugees" by the planeload.

Lexi,

Now you are spouting the old labor line from 2008 that proved so horribly wrong.

Here are the numbers. (I have chosen the financial years as the policies were changed roughly mid 2008)

Financial year/ boat people arrivals.

98/99 - 921
99/00 - 4175
00/01 - 4137
01/02 - 3039 <- Pacific solution introduced mid way
02/03 - 0
03/04 - 82
04/05 - 0
05/06 - 61
06/07 - 133
07/08 - 25
08/09 - 1033 <- Pacific solution removed at beginning.
09/10 - 5609
10/11 - 4940

I'm sorry, but no one is stupid enough to swallow that the fluctuations were due to periodic fluctuations.

*BTW: I may be a lot of things - but being
predictable - I'm proud to say - isn't one of them!*

Dear Lexi, you certainly are predictable. All wishy washy
and feelgood, no direct answer to a question. It remains the
crux of this debate, even if that goes over your head.

Because of course to answer you would have to think for yourself,
not just quote another URL, as per normal.

Dear Yabby,

You know me so well!

SM,

Try reading up on things. Stay informed.
It helps.

http://www.aph.gov.au/library/pubs/bn/sp/boatarrivals.htm

Lexi

Your link to the ABS confirms my previous post regarding number of refugees to Australia compared to the rest of the world.

I am disheartened to hear that Abbott is attempting to, belatedly, work in a bi-partisan effort to change the law to enable continued off-shore processing. No matter the cost in dollars and lives, both our main political parties have lost any moral backbone they may have had.

Shame Abbott cannot work with Labor on urgent issues such as keeping Australian manufacturing viable, transition to clean energy, investing in infrastructure and so much more than a few thousand boat people.