“The rules have allowed it since 1989,” he said.
“There will always be exceptional cases where you will want to allow visas to be issued and to do that we created ministerial discretion.
“Morrison himself would have exercised this ministerial discretion when he was[immigration] minister – I don’t know how he’s forgotten.”
Labor home affairs spokeswoman Kristina Keneally said the Prime Minister was wrong.
“The minister for immigration can,with a stroke of a pen,grant visas that allow the Murugappan family to go back to Biloela and stay in Australia,” she said.
“And if the Morrison government won’t do it,an Albanese Labor government will.”
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Bronwyn Dendle and Angela Fredericks,who live in Biloela and are friends of the Murugappans,have criticised ministers and MPs for denying the ability to intervene when Hawke could use his discretion as minister.
“It’s not sitting before the courts. It’s sitting on Minister Hawke’s desk right now. It’s been sitting there forever,” Dendle toldThe Herald andThe Age last month.
“He only has to sign the papers and they can come home. It’s not tricky,it’s not tricky at all,but that’s the spin they give their ministers.”
Biloela is in the Queensland electorate of Flynn where the Labor candidate,Matt Burnett,supports the family being released while the Nationals candidate,Colin Boyce,says the rules should be followed.
Labor leader Anthony Albanese wrongly claimed on Thursday that Australia’s international borders were closed,sparking criticism from Morrison about whether he understood federal policy details.
Asked on ABC TV about the low unemployment rate,Albanese told journalist Lisa Millar that border policy was part of the reason.
“Our borders are closed,Lisa. Our borders are closed,” he said.
The international border wasopened in February for thousands of workers.
Asked about this later,Albanese conceded the borders were open.
Morrison pointed to the mistake to remind voters that Albanese had been unable to name the unemployment rate on the first day of the campaign.
“Today,on a completely separate issue,doesn’t even know whether the borders are open or closed. This guy doesn’t know whether he’s coming or going,” he said.
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