2025-08-26
Labor today launched another cruel attack on refugees and migrants, tabling new legislation to strip people of the right to natural justice.
The Home Affairs (2025 Measures No. 1) Bill 2025 introduced by Home Affairs Minister Burke is targeted at people recently released from immigration detention following a High Court ruling that people cannot be held indefinitely by bureaucrats or politicians.
The Albanese Labor Government, in the last Parliament, worked hand-in-hand with Peter Dutton to push through extreme anti-migrant and anti-refugee policies Australia has seen in a generation, and now they are doubling down on these laws.
This law is designed so that people can be forcibly removed to Nauru without having any right to even see the application the government is making. It also removes their right to make representations about why their removal would be unsafe, or explain to the Nauru government why they should not be deported there.
When rights of natural justice are removed, critical matters like health concerns, family connections and basic human decency get overridden, while damaging mistakes of fact are not identified.
This legislation is even being made retrospective to address likely failures of natural justice that have been raised in two separate court challenges to Labor’s efforts to forcibly remove people to Nauru.
Senator David Shoebridge, Greens spokesperson for Immigration, said: “The Government is actively seeking to suspend natural justice from some of the most vulnerable members of the community for one of the most important decisions that will be made in their lives. That is just plain wrong.
“For centuries, natural justice has been a cornerstone of our law, ensuring everyone has the right to be heard before important decisions are made about their lives.
“The fact that the Albanese Government is seeking to remove these rights from migrants shows how toxic and far right Labor’s immigration policy has become.
“Everyone should be equal under the law, no matter where they are born, but that can only happen if people are given the right to be heard before decisions are made about them.
“We know there are active court cases on this issue and by making this law retrospective Labor is trying to validate past illegal practices by Home Affairs and defeat these cases with another legislative deal with the Coalition.
“Nauruan President Adeang made it clear last year, he intends to send anyone Australia deports there back to the country which they originally fled.
“People rightfully don’t want to go to Nauru because they know they will face the very real risk of being forcibly returned to danger, and they surely have the right to be heard before that happens to them.”