NZ Prime Minister - No thanks to boat people
Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2011 1:30 pmhttp://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10737928
Interesting stance taken by the New Zealand Prime Minister and his cabinet.
"If you're standing on a boat with signs saying 'we want to got to New Zealand' and inviting intervention, then that's a form of pressure."
He said his information came from a range of sources, but would not comment further.
"These people won't be coming to New Zealand. That's the bottom line."
Mr Key said New Zealand took in 750 refugees a year and there were no plans to expand that programme.
"That's a good programme, it basically identifies genuine refugees and they come to New Zealand and we do everything we can to make them feel at home here and start a new life here," Mr Key told TV3's Firstline.
"But once you start taking people in the form of people smugglers, then you're rewarding the bay guys, you're rewarding people who are putting other's lives at risk.
"There's no guarantee that they're actually refugees, and quite frankly you open the floodgate, which you've seen in Australia is one that you can't stop."
Interesting stance taken by the New Zealand Prime Minister and his cabinet.
"If you're standing on a boat with signs saying 'we want to got to New Zealand' and inviting intervention, then that's a form of pressure."
He said his information came from a range of sources, but would not comment further.
"These people won't be coming to New Zealand. That's the bottom line."
Mr Key said New Zealand took in 750 refugees a year and there were no plans to expand that programme.
"That's a good programme, it basically identifies genuine refugees and they come to New Zealand and we do everything we can to make them feel at home here and start a new life here," Mr Key told TV3's Firstline.
"But once you start taking people in the form of people smugglers, then you're rewarding the bay guys, you're rewarding people who are putting other's lives at risk.
"There's no guarantee that they're actually refugees, and quite frankly you open the floodgate, which you've seen in Australia is one that you can't stop."
