One of the debates that has escaped scrutiny since Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced the Expert Panel on Asylum Seekers last month is what our annual refugee intake should actually look like.
I acknowledge this is potentially controversial in terms of racial profiling and minimising the tragedy of the numbers displaced from some conflicts – such as in the Democratic Republic of Congo – for ones that are closer to our regional interests but less critical in terms of humanitarian emergency – such as the Sri Lankan civil war of 2008.
But for an interim period, as we develop long-term approaches towards burden sharing and protection…