CANBERRA, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- Asylum seekers being detained by Australia would be settled by New Zealand under a proposal being considered by Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison.
Morrison has reportedly softened his hardline stance on the refugees who attempted to come to Australia by boat and is considering New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's long-standing offer to re-settle 150 asylum seekers currently held in indefinite detention on the island nation of Nauru.
It marks a significant departure from Morrison's previous position on asylum seekers after the he served as the key architect of Operation Sovereign Borders (OSB), the government's plan to stop the maritime arrivals of asylum seekers to Australia, during his time as minister for and border protection.
However, New Zealand's offer would only be accepted by the government if a "lifetime visa ban" was implemented that would prevent the asylum seekers from ever receiving an Australian visa, even if they wanted to visit as a tourist.
Peter Dutton, Australia's minister for home affairs, warned in June that a "single act of compassion" could jeopardize the achievements of OSB.
The Opposition Australian Labor Party (ALP) and Greens have opposed the visa ban, leaving the government with an uphill battle to pass it through the parliament.
Shayne Neumann, the ALP's immigration spokesperson, described the lifetime visa ban as a "ridiculous overreach."
"The legislation is a ridiculous overreach and is irrelevant to securing third country resettlement arrangements and Labor does not agree to the legislation in its current form," he told reporters on Tuesday evening.
"Scott Morrison has not explained why these laws are required for a resettlement deal with New Zealand and the (governing Liberal Party) have not reached out to Labor to give an assurance of any such deal."
