Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton doesn't want criminals becoming Australian citizens, suggesting a plan to automatically cancel the visas of those convicted of serious criminal offences.
Speaking on 3AW radio, Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said people shouldn't be rewarded for doing the wrong thing.
"Ninety-nine per cent of people who come to our country do the right thing - abide by the laws,” he said.
“If they don't and they commit an offence against an Australian citizen then they should expect to be booted out of our country.”
He said Australians should abide by the law even when they don’t agree with them – however he’s flagged looking at ways to “improve” them when it comes to citizenship.
The visa crackdown, proposed recently by a Liberal-led parliamentary committee, would give the government the power to deport violent foreign born criminals as young as age 16.
'Unfair and unlawful': Greens
In January 2017, Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton commented that migrants who commit violent crimes should be "shipped back to their own country".
An unknown number of adults and youths have been referred by Victorian authorities to the federal government, resulting in several visa cancellations and deportation orders.
The Greens mounted a strong opposition to the Turnbull government's proposed changes to the nation's citizenship laws, which were ultimately rejected by the Senate in October.
These included requiring applicants to live in Australia for four years on permanent residency visas before applying for citizenship, and potentially barring people with a history of family violence or involvement in crime from applying at all.
They also extended Peter Dutton's powers.
Tasmanian Greens Senator Nick McKim said the Minister already has strong authority.
“He already has extraordinary powers, he already has the power to deport the people he says he wants to deport,” he said.
“The problem is he's not using these powers lawfully and in accordance with the legislation."
The Greens said the Minister’s plan is unfair and unlawful.
Labor has also criticised the government for what it is an unfair emphasis on crime committed by migrants and refugees, but has supported moves to cancel visas and deporting non-citizen criminals.
Unwelcome guests
Peter Dutton isn't the only one wanting more powers, with a report in the Daily Telegraph newspaper revealing officials in the Department of Home Affairs want more scope to deal with the tens of thousands of visa overstayers living in Australia.
While a quarter of the migrants are from Malaysia or China, 5,000 are from the United States and close to 4,000 are British.
In July last year, there were almost 65,000 lapsed visa holders, the majority having entered on tourist or student visas.
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