OK, how much is this costing us?

[***super_nova***]

"In 2013 the New Zealand prime minister, John Key, and his then counterpart Julia Gillard struck a deal for New Zealand to resettle 150 people a year from Manus Island or Nauru immigration detention, but it was effectively scrapped by Tony Abbott after he won the federal election later that year."

http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/jan/19/turnbull-urged-allow-new-zealand-to-resettle-r...

Instead we are keeping them in those hell holes.  WHY?  just because we can?

[creative*crisis]

On the face of it, it sounds unbelievably stupid.

Lose lose all round

[esayaf]

Probably a truck load. Can't help but be perplexed by what the Coalition does. Apparently we have a spending problem but the Coalition seems to be hell bent on increasing the amount of money they spend to fix these dire problems.

The cashless welfare card is going to nearly double the welfare bill, for no gain. Billions spent to buy orange life boats to just throw away. On top of the bribes to people smugglers.
170 billion (we'll be lucky if it's that cheap by the time we get them and all they need to fly) on an aeroplane that doesn't fly and three countries have already pulled out of the development stage let alone wait to start buying them.
Another 50 billion buying submarines so that we can spy on China and North Korea for the yanks, as their submarines can be detected.
So much for the debt and deficit disaster

[the_great_she_elephant]

---

@***super_nova*** wrote:

"In 2013 the New Zealand prime minister, John Key, and his then counterpart Julia Gillard struck a deal for New Zealand to resettle 150 people a year from Manus Island or Nauru immigration detention, but it was effectively scrapped by Tony Abbott after he won the federal election later that year."

http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/jan/19/turnbull-urged-allow-new-zealand-to-resettle-r...

Instead we are keeping them in those hell holes.  WHY?  just because we can?

---

We keep them  as hostages - a graphic warning to would-be-asylum seekers of what will happen to them if they set foot on our shores, That explains why detention centres are such grim places and  why we won't allow the inmates to be resettled in New Zealand.

[debra9275]

It's just craziness really

[the_great_she_elephant]

---

@debra9275 wrote:

It's just craziness really

---

On the contrary, it makes excellent sense - as long as you are prepared  forget any feelings of compassion and view these people simply as pawns on a political chess board.

[debra9275]

True She-ele... I keep forgetting we have people like that running the country

[esayaf]

These so called people are the same ones that won't give us a bill of rights. They want to maintain the power to do as they please with whoever they desire

[bluecat*dancing]

A court decision, in PNG, on the legality of Manus Island prison camp is due to be handed down next week which could result in Australia having to close down the detention centre. The goverment could reopen talks with NZ and transfer the men there but, instead, they will most likely send them to Christmas Island.

The refugees on Nauru and the men on Manus have been treated deplorably by the Australian Government, for which it has been widely condemned.

[bluecat*dancing]

The Australian Government spends something like $1.2b on offshore detention centres.