No solutions from Peter Dutton
The ALP is thinking about having another internal debate on what to do about boat people.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
As usual, Peter Dutton turgidly tells us that the only thing we can do is what we do now -- nothing, at great cost.
He drones that any change from this will be a return to the bad old days of Rudd and Gillard.
But Julia Gillard has been the only Australian leader ever to come up with a workable solution to the boat people problem.
She wanted to give our Muslim refugees to Malaysia, so that Malaysia could give us their Christian refugees who been driven out of Burma.
On behalf of Pauline Hanson, I'd like to repeat that point:
Julia wanted us to give away Muslims and to get Christians in return.
But the Liberals and the Nationals teamed up with the Greens to destroy the whole idea in the High Court, because of a technicality.
Result 1 -- Liberals, Nationals and Greens all smirk, then gloat, then prance with joy at their triumph.
Result 2 -- at great cost to Australia, Muslim boat people are simply kept in Nauru and Papua New Guinea, so that nothing can happen for their benefit or for ours.
You'd think that Peter Dutton would have realised by now that Julia Gillard's Malaysia solution could have been put to work ages ago, because the Australian High Court has no jurisdiction in Nauru or PNG.
Especially since PNG's High Court has ruled that the present situation can't go on forever -- at some point, Australia actually has to do something.
But no.
The Liberal and National government of Australia has always refused to let these Muslim boat people go to any other place which will take them.
Eventually therefore, the thing which the Liberal and National government of Australia will have to do is to bring these Muslims to Australia itself.
Because if PNG's High Court so orders, the government of PNG will transport them to PNG's southwest coast, put them in canoes and point them towards our closest Torres Strait islands.
Our Navy may pick them all up, but after that they couldn't go back to PNG.
Nor could they be parked without end on HMAS Whatever.
One of the many reasons why Tony Abbott became unbearable was that he wouldn't solve problems -- he simply generated endless peevishness and argument.
Peter Dutton, an Abbottite to the end, has no plan but to do the same.
G.T.W. AGNEW.
Coopers Plains
Another sugar crushing season is upon us
The opposition Treasurer Chris Bowen has called for a paper from the KAP on ethanol and I am giving each of the key members in the ALP and Liberal parties an outlined brief on the significance of ethanol.
Motor vehicle emissions kill more people than motor vehicle accidents.
On average $20,000 million goes to the Middle East to buy oil instead of Australia which has no indigenous supply of petrol.
Storage has slipped from 23 days, three years ago (to quote Minister Frydenberg), and now to only 20 days.
Believe it or not, the Liberals are talking about more tax.
Their military advice never told them about terrorists blowing up tanks and even whole oil fields.
On the ethanol experience, over the last 10 -15 years, a 22% mandate as in Brazil along with 30% oil shale as in
America would make Australia safe and deliver a 23% price rise to the sugar industry and a 16% price rise to grain, and a 3% cost cutting to cattle production.
Hon Bob Katter MP
Federal Member for Kennedy
Derek Barry
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
