The Home Affairs (2025 Measures No. 1) Bill 2025 was rammed through today by the Liberals and Labor, following revelations that the secret agreement with Nauru signed by the Albanese Government will cost $2.5 billion.
In a rushed hearing last night, it was made clear that this Bill would impact tens of thousands of people, denying them natural justice, and the secret Nauru Memorandum of Understanding signed last week will cost billions.
The Department of Home Affairs could not even confirm if the Nauru MOU made reference to the Refugee Convention. This is despite the Nauru President David Adeang saying that Nauru's long-term goal is to remove people back to the country they fled, in clear breach of the Convention.
Under this law, the Minister can direct a woman who is escaping domestic violence to get a passport. When she rightfully is fearful that doing this would require her to meet her abuser, this law prevents her from even informing the government of this fact. Instead, she either puts herself in danger by obeying the Minister or goes to jail for trying to protect herself.
This law also allows the Government to forcibly remove people to Nauru (and any other third country with which there is an agreement) with no natural justice considerations.
Labor refused to allow submissions from the public at the hearing into the Bill last night. However, the Greens tabled a series of submissions from the public to ensure they are on the record, which can be accessed here.
Senator David Shoebridge, Greens Spokesperson for Immigration, said: "There are no depths Labor won't explore to outflank the Coalition on the right on immigration.
"The cornerstone of our entire legal system, natural justice, has just been smashed by the Albanese Government.
"Mandatory detention, offshore detention, preventing people who sought asylum by sea from resettling, a Trump-style travel ban and now laws that can deny natural justice, this is Labor's legacy. It's a legacy that deliberately undermines multiculturalism and fairness.
"When Labor makes laws that say some people who were not born here are denied basic legal rights, that feeds the far-right extremism we saw at anti-immigration rallies over the last weekend.
"Australia should be treating our neighbours with respect, not bribing them to become a 21st-century penal colony.
"The Pacific can see how Australia bullies and bribes its neighbours.
"Failing to treat our neighbours as friends and equals comes at a cost, and is a long-term threat to Australia's political and moral leadership in the Pacific."
