Smith StuartSTUART SMITH (National—Kaikōura): Thank you Mr Speaker. I want to speak about Behrouz Boochani and how he was granted a visa and asylum in New Zealand and the process. This is not an attack on Mr Boochani. I've never met him. I don't know him and I've never read his book and nor do I have any intention to. But I do note that Mr Boochani has been very quick to criticise anyone who has raised questions about this and labelled people as—their hate speeches which is a very bad term and I think quite unwarranted. On 21 October last year Immigration New Zealand (INZ) informed the Minister of Immigration that they were processing or in the process of considering a visitor visa for Mr Boochani under the no-surprises policy. So clearly they had some concerns about that and under the instructions to be granted a visitor visa the person needs to be a bona fide applicant and that is defined as someone who genuinely intends a temporary stay in New Zealand for a lawful purpose" and who is not likely "to breach the conditions of any [visa] granted." Mr Boochani's onward travel arrangements—I asked the Minister if INZ had looked into that but that apparently is not in the public interest. The day before Mr Boochani left Port Moresby he was interviewed by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation where he said he would not be returning to Papua New Guinea; he might go to the US where he'd been accepted for asylum or he might stay in New Zealand. That is quite clearly a breach of the instructions and he shouldn't have been able to get into New Zealand.Under section 15 of the Immigration Act it states "(1) No visa or entry permission may be granted and no visa waiver may apply to any person … who has …been removed [or] excluded … from another country."—under the same basis the Australian journalist Mary Ann Jolley was excluded from or prevented from boarding a plane in Australia to come to New Zealand for personal reasons because she'd been deported from Malaysia yet Mr Boochani got through.Mr Boochani entered Australia illegally by boat. Under that country's laws it states—and I quote—"Any person cannot settle in Australia if they attempt to enter Australia illegally by boat." Further the Minister of Home Affairs in Australia quite clearly stated that Behrouz Boochani would never step foot in that country—again would raise serious questions about whether Mr Boochani had been excluded from Australia. Yet neither the Minister nor INZ checked with the Australian Government. [Interruption] That's right. The refugee status branch of Immigration New Zealand in their booklet around immigration quite clearly states: "If a person can obtain effective protection from the authorities of their country or a third country New Zealand is not obliged to protect them." And yet Mr Boochani had an option to settle in Papua New Guinea and he had an option to settle in the United States so under that instruction he shouldn't have been granted asylum in New Zealand. I've been informed by immigration lawyers that many applications from people from Afghanistan in particular and from Iran to come and visit family here—and these people often have very good travel histories; that is they travel in and out of countries all the time—are not granted visitors visas and it appears that it's on the grounds that they are likely to be or potentially an asylum seeker. Yet Mr Boochani a well-known asylum seeker who quite clearly stated before he came to New Zealand that he might not leave the country quite clearly should never have been granted asylum. He should never have been granted a visa to come into this country. The Minister must look into this and come back to the House and tell us why this behaviour has occurred under his watch."