In a surprising development, the Prime Minister of New Zealand Mr Keys announced that NZ has developed a plan to reduce the flow of asylum seekers’ boats to New Zealand by intercepting the boats in the Bass Strait and taking them to Launceston in Tasmania for offshore processing. The agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Tasmania was signed by Mr John Keys and the Premier of Tasmania Ms Lara Giddings last month. New Zealand will pay Tasmania $10,000 per asylum seeker that is processed in Tasmania and will also pay an additional fee for asylum seekers that are in Tasmania for more than two years. The two governments are still negotiating where the asylum seekers will be accommodated but initially a wing of the Launceston hospital which has been vacant for some time will be used. A number of other sites have been proposed by the Tasmanian Government. It has been reported that the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Mr Antonio Guterres has supported the New Zealand Government plan since Tasmania is a signatory to the UN Refugee Convention.
New Zealand Government has asked the Tasmanian Government to patrol the Bass Strait thoroughly in order to establish a virtual boom gate across the strait and has promised that New Zealand will supply the boats required and will pay for the cost of patrolling. The agreement should create at least 250 new jobs for Tasmania.
