TRANSCRIPT
In November 2023, the High Court made a landmark ruling which suggested indefinite detention is illegal.
That led to the release of nearly 150 detainees from immigration detention under strict visa conditions.
But now, it's been revealed those visas were invalid.
Immigration Minister Andrew Giles [[jiles]] says it was a technicality.
"In recent days, it became clear to the department that a technical issue affected visas granted to people released following the high court decision in the NZYQ matter. Late last year, this issue was a technical issue and has now been resolved."
The Minister says the problem, which was only recently flagged by Commonwealth lawyers, affected all but one of those released.
Many of the group have serious criminal convictions, including for murder and sexual assault.
In the months since they were released, several have been arrested for breaching the strict monitoring and curfew conditions set out in the visas.
But they could escape conviction due to the bureaucratic mistake, as the visas were invalid.
Mr Giles says public safety is not an issue.
"I want to reassure every member of the Australian community that this has not affected the constant supervision, the constant monitoring of everyone who was required to be released in this cohort. Because community safety has been our absolute focus throughout community safety, working with our law enforcement officers, working with the border force, the Australian Federal police, and the state and territory police forces focusing on doing all we can, adhering to the law to keep the community safe."
Labor says the technical issue related to the definition of detention and has blamed the former Coalition government, which created the visa class these detainees are on.
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has rejected that assertion.
"The red herring that they've thrown out there is not factually correct, and Minister Giles and others shouldn't be in their jobs. How the prime minister can keep Minister Giles and his job when he's released 149 hardcore criminals into the community on the wrong visas is beyond the average Australians comprehension."
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has defended his government, pointing out there were other parties involved.
"The High Court made a decision. The High Court made a decision, not my government. As the Opposition have said in moments of candour, in between their moments of trying to spread fear, no government is above the law. My government isn't, and no government is."
The Immigration Minister says the government acted very quickly when it found out about the issue, but Opposition Finance spokeswoman Jane Hume says they knew about it in December.
"If you can fix these visas through something as simple as ministerial regulation, well then surely there wasn't a problem with the visas in the first place. Minister Giles failed to turn up to briefings from his own department. They have failed to take advice from the department. Apparently this issue around the visas was known in December, so why wasn't something done before? Now, quite frankly, minister Giles position is entirely untenable, and the fact that Anthony Albanese has kept him in his position demonstrates that this is a government that's weak on border security at."
Mr Giles has denied claims the federal government was made aware of the problem in the visa legislation in December.
