The government’s proposed lifetime ban on refugees in offshore detention visiting Australia is in trouble after several crossbench senators voiced opposition to the bill. Despite the Coalition ramping up its rhetoric on the ban, Labor confirmed it still opposed it on Monday, and senators David Leyonhjelm, Derryn Hinch, Stirling Griff and Skye Kakoschke-Moore expressed concerns. Under a lifetime ban, refugees on Manus Island and Nauru would be banned from visiting Australia even if they become citizens of another country. On Monday, Griff, the NXT’s immigration spokesman, told Guardian Australia he believed “that the ban would be cruel, and does nothing to achieve the objective of stopping the boats”. “You know Australians want their borders kept secure, you know that Australia recognises that our policy on border protection has worked.

Source: The Guardian November 14, 2016 05:48 UTC