Government Abandons Preventative Detention for Immigration Detainees, Pursues Deportation Alternative

Ceredit: Gordon Reid MP facebook Page

The Albanese government will abandon preventative detention measures against former immigration detainees from the NZYQ cohort, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke announced Monday, instead pursuing deportation and third country resettlement as the High Court maintains strict thresholds for continued detention.

Burke told Sky News the government would shift focus entirely away from preventative detention, acknowledging the High Court's position that indefinite detention is unlawful and that new judicial thresholds make preventative detention nearly impossible to implement.

"For a long time in Australia, if we couldn't send people back to the country of their origin, we just put them in detention and thought, OK, well, they might stay there forever. The High Court have said you can't do that," Burke said during the television interview.

"The High Court's made other decisions that have put a really high threshold on preventative detention. So my priority now is getting a pathway for these individuals to get out of the country altogether."

The policy reversal represents a significant shift for the government, which has struggled with managing the NZYQ cohort since the High Court's landmark decision deemed indefinite immigration detention unlawful. The announcement comes as the government begins its second term facing continued pressure over immigration policy.

Labor MP for Robertson Gordon Reid, appearing on Sky News AM Agenda Monday morning, defended the government's approach while emphasizing public safety remains the priority.

"It is the priority of the government to keep Australians safe. That's our number one priority," Reid said. "The comments made by Tony Burke only within the last 24 hours is that we are going to progress and find a pathway forward to ensure that this is the case."

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