I have not seen the recent statistics, but last I looked, about 8000 boat people arrive each year. I have often wondered: why is it such a political issue?
On my calculations, $8 billion dollars for 8000 boat people is $1 million dollars per boat person over the next 4 years. That is ridiculous.
We have over 25 Million people in this country, which means one boat person arrives each year for every 3000 Australians who live here. This is hardly an issue in my eyes, and certainly does not justify over $8billion being spent over 4 years.
Indeed, I have not experienced any problems in my life with boat people. When it comes down to it, boat people are either extremely motivated individuals, or desperate refugees. Refugees deserve sympathy, and Australia benefits economically every time a motivated person joins our economy. Lets face it – boat people are clearly motivated as they have proven their willingness to risk everything they own (including their lives) to get here. I only know one boat person – Ahn Doe – he arrived on a boat from Vietnam with his family during the war and he has proven to be an asset to the country.
This aspect of the budget is clearly a politically driven issue as the figures just don’t justify the spend, and the $8billion dollars should really be invested into stimulating our economy.