Immigration Minister Scott Morrison says asylum seekers arriving by boat to Christmas Island will now be sent to either Manus island or Papua New Guinea or Nauru within 48 hours.
Mr Morrison has confirmed the arrival on the weekend of the eighth asylum boat since the election carrying 30 people and says the new 48 hour turn around rule will apply to them.
The Immigration Minister has also defended the decision to provide only a weekly briefing on boat arrivals.
Amanda Cavill reports.
Scott Morrison has told his first weekly briefing on asylum boats that around 500 people have arrived since the federal election on September 7.
Mr Morrison says about half of those have already left Australia's shores for processing on either Papua New Guinea's Manus Island or Nauru.
He says the Coalition government will increase the speed of processing new asylum seekers with a new 48-hour turn around rule.
"Under the previous government people settled in on Christmas Island. That won't be happening under a Coalition government and we'll be moving immediately to ensure that we have a tasked turn around, target turn around for those who have arrived subject to operational logistical matters."
The minister says a process is being put in place to ensure that some medical and security checks that usually take several weeks can be done on arrival at the overseas detention centres.
Mr Morrison says there will only be a weekly update on boat arrivals because it's not in the national interest for boats to be announced as they arrive.
He says the government wants to starve people smugglers of information.
"The government is determined to implement the policies to stop the boats and our focus is on implementation. This briefing is not about providing shipping news to people smugglers. It's about what the government is doing in this operation to stop those people coming to Australia on those boats and deliver on our mandate. Briefings will not be provided on tactical or operational matters that may compromise current or future operations."
Mr Morrison also says details of boat sinkings or if boats are turned around when it's safe to do may or may not be released.
Acting Labor leader Chris Bowen says that's simply unacceptable.
"Now I think this policy is actually quite naive. If the new government thinks that it's not going to become public when a boat's been turned back or has arrived in Australia, I think they will be sadly mistaken. But they are the ones that should be telling the Australian people. It's up to the new government. They can review the policy, they can be upfront with the Australian people, they can tell the Australian people when a boat has arrived, they can tell the Australian people when a boat's been turned back. If they don't do that the Australian people are entitled to conclude that they are not being upfront."
But the government's plan to control the information flow around asylum seekers has already been put to the test.
Over the weekend Christmas Island residents told the media about the arrival of a boat carrying about 30 people.
Christmas Island administrator Jon Stanhope says he has not been told about any information blackout policy.
Mr Stanhope says he would find it remarkable that there could be a policy in place that would seek to prevent 2000 Australians that live on Christmas Island from talking about what happens there.
Greens leader Senator Christine Milne says she supports clear transparency about asylum seeker numbers and supports and encourages all Australians to expose the cover up whenever possible.
" People are horrified that rather than stop the boats Tony Abbott wants to hide the boats to try to give the impression that the problem has gone away by trying to hide the information. And I would encourage the people of Christmas Island and right around the country to be coming out strongly and telling the Australian people what's actually happening."
By Amanda Cavill
