Andrew Giles has come a long way from his days as a refugee lawyer. Now Australia's immigration minister, he's suddenly found himself in a rush to bolster the federal government's powers to deport people.
Andrew Giles sat on the green leather benches of the House of Representatives looking as comfortable as a man waiting for a root canal in a dental surgery reception.to target countries rejecting citizens Australia was trying to deport, and to allow the Commonwealth to jail people it wanted to give the boot if they refused to cooperate.
Andrew Giles, sitting alongside Mark Butler, introduced the legislation that the government rushed through the House of Representatives on Tuesday.Sure, he'd gone to why the government believed the legislation was in the national interest, why it would strengthen the immigration framework, and why he personally needed extra powers.Prior to entering parliament, Giles made a career as a lawyer for asylum seekers and refugees.
Immigration is a prickly topic in Australian politics, and has been for much of the last two decades. The finding that indefinite immigration detention for people who couldn't be deported was unlawful has up-ended two decades of legal precedent, and forced Labor to get creative. Those challengers suddenly found their ankle bracelets were removed, leaving their lawyers with no option but to scrap the cases.The government refuses to answer why there was a sudden change of heart for those individuals, even as Home Affairs Minister Clare O'Neil had insisted all in the cohort would be locked up if she had the power to do so.A big part of what taxpayers pay politicians to do is pore over policy and scrutinise legislation.
For others, particularly on the crossbench, it's less about the cut and thrust of daily politics and more about the genuine impact of the proposal on people in Australia's immigration system.
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