The Claim
“Closed mainland detention centres and moves detainees offshore, citing budget savings as the motivation, even though offshore processing costing almost twice as much as onshore processing.”
Original Sources Provided
✅ FACTUAL VERIFICATION
Claim Element 1: Four mainland detention centres were closed.
TRUE. On January 14, 2014, Immigration Minister Scott Morrison announced the closure of four mainland detention facilities: Scherger (Queensland), Port Augusta (South Australia), Leonora (Western Australia), and Pontville (Tasmania). The announcement stated these facilities were "remote, relatively small and expensive" and would close between mid-2014 and mid-2015 [1][2].
Claim Element 2: Budget savings were cited as the motivation.
TRUE. Morrison explicitly stated the closures would save the budget $88.8 million annually (approximately $90 million/year), with total savings of $280 million over the closure period [1][2]. The minister's official statement cited "significant financial savings for the government and the Australian taxpayer" as the rationale [2].
Claim Element 3: Offshore processing costs almost twice as much as onshore processing.
MISLEADING/UNDERSATED. According to the National Commission of Audit (May 2014), the cost comparison was actually far more stark than "almost twice":
- Offshore detention: $400,000 per person per year
- Onshore detention: $239,000 per person per year
- Community detention (onshore): Less than $100,000 per person per year
- Bridging visa (community): Approximately $40,000 per person per year [3]
Offshore processing cost approximately 1.7 times (not "almost twice") onshore detention costs, but 10 times community detention and 10 times bridging visa arrangements [3].
The claim understates the disparity by using "almost twice" when the actual comparison depends on which onshore metric is used. If comparing offshore ($400,000) to community-based onshore processing ($40,000-100,000), offshore costs were 4-10 times higher, not merely "almost twice."
Missing Context
The closures were a direct result of reduced boat arrivals. The claim omits that the Coalition government's Operation Sovereign Borders policy had successfully reduced asylum seeker boat arrivals by January 2014. With fewer arrivals, fewer detention beds were needed. Morrison stated: "It's always our preference with families to locate them in community detention" and the closures were possible because "the other measures" (turnbacks, offshore processing) were "proving to be successful" [1][2].
Detainees were not simply "moved offshore" - they were transferred to other onshore facilities or community detention. The 285 affected detainees were to be transferred to "other facilities" or placed in "community detention" where possible [1]. The claim creates an impression of a direct transfer from mainland to offshore, but the closures were part of a broader system rationalization.
The government explicitly acknowledged the cost disparity. In Morrison's ABC interview, he conceded: "Although it is cheaper to process asylum seekers on the mainland... it doesn't stop the boats" [1]. This admission directly confirms the cost comparison but frames it as a necessary trade-off for policy effectiveness.
Source Credibility Assessment
The original sources include:
- The Guardian (2014): Mainstream international news outlet with center-left editorial stance. Generally reliable for factual reporting but has advocated for refugee rights [4].
- The Big Smoke: Commentary/opinion website - presents advocacy perspectives rather than neutral reporting [5].
- National Commission of Audit (NCOA): Official Australian Government audit body - authoritative, non-partisan source for cost data [3].
The NCOA report is the most authoritative source, providing official cost figures from government budget documents.
Labor Comparison
Did Labor do something similar?
Search conducted: "Labor government offshore processing Nauru Manus reintroduced 2012"
Finding: The Labor Government (Kevin Rudd) actually reintroduced offshore processing in August 2013 - five months before the Coalition took office. Labor's "PNG Solution" sent asylum seekers to Manus Island (Papua New Guinea) and resumed transfers to Nauru [6].
Labor also closed mainland detention facilities during their tenure (2007-2013) when demand decreased, and opened new ones when boat arrivals surged. The 2010-2013 period saw massive expansion of both onshore and offshore detention capacity under Labor [6].
Key distinction: Both parties engaged in facility closures when demand decreased. The difference was policy framework - Labor maintained onshore processing as the primary pathway while expanding offshore, whereas the Coalition prioritized offshore processing as a deterrent.
Balanced Perspective
The claim presents a contradiction: closing expensive mainland facilities while operating even more expensive offshore facilities. However, this apparent contradiction ignores the stated policy rationale.
The Coalition's stated position: Morrison explicitly admitted onshore processing was cheaper but argued "it doesn't stop the boats" [1]. The government's position was that offshore processing served a deterrent function that onshore processing could not achieve, regardless of cost. The closures of expensive, underutilized remote facilities were presented as pragmatic cost-saving measures while maintaining the broader offshore processing architecture as a deterrent.
Critics' perspective: The Greens and refugee advocates argued that community detention was the cheapest option ($40,000 per person vs. $400,000 offshore) and should be prioritized [2][3]. They characterized the closures as creating artificial scarcity in onshore options to justify offshore transfers.
Economic reality: The Commission of Audit found detention costs had skyrocketed 129% annually, rising from $118.4 million in 2009-10 to $3.3 billion in 2013-14 [3]. This explosion in costs occurred across both Labor and Coalition governments as both expanded detention infrastructure in response to boat arrivals.
Comparative context: This is not unique to the Coalition. Both major parties have operated expensive offshore processing regimes (Labor reintroduced it in 2013). Both parties closed facilities when demand dropped. The cost disparity between offshore and onshore processing was well-documented under both governments.
PARTIALLY TRUE
6.0
out of 10
The claim is factually accurate regarding the closures and cited budget savings, and the cost comparison between offshore and onshore processing is real (though the "almost twice" figure understates the disparity when comparing offshore to community-based alternatives). However, the claim mischaracterizes the detainee movements (not simply "moved offshore") and omits crucial context about why the closures were possible (reduced boat arrivals due to Operation Sovereign Borders) and the government's explicit acknowledgment that offshore processing was more expensive but served a deterrent function. The framing suggests hypocrisy without acknowledging the stated policy rationale.
Final Score
6.0
OUT OF 10
PARTIALLY TRUE
The claim is factually accurate regarding the closures and cited budget savings, and the cost comparison between offshore and onshore processing is real (though the "almost twice" figure understates the disparity when comparing offshore to community-based alternatives). However, the claim mischaracterizes the detainee movements (not simply "moved offshore") and omits crucial context about why the closures were possible (reduced boat arrivals due to Operation Sovereign Borders) and the government's explicit acknowledgment that offshore processing was more expensive but served a deterrent function. The framing suggests hypocrisy without acknowledging the stated policy rationale.
📚 SOURCES & CITATIONS (6)
-
1
Scott Morrison says he will stop holding weekly asylum seeker briefings
Immigration Minister Scott Morrison has indicated he will no longer hold a weekly press conference on the Government's border protection operations. The Coalition has not held a briefing on Operation Sovereign Borders since December 20, after previously holding them on a weekly basis. Mr Morrison, who will hold a briefing this morning, has told the ABC's 7.30 program that his weekly briefings will now be held on an "as-needs basis". The briefings will now be replaced by a written statement unless there is something significant to report. "We will issue a statement on the numbers of arrivals and the transfers, and we will hold operational briefings - like we will [on Wednesday] - when we have something to say and when we have something to report," he said.
Abc Net -
2
Morrison closes four detention centres
Scott Morrison has closed four detention centres, but will not comment on reports of a hunger strike and self-harm at Christmas Island.
The Sydney Morning Herald -
3
Commission of Audit reveals offshore processing budget blowout
UNSW Sites -
4
Scott Morrison to close four asylum seeker detention centres on mainland
Facilities no longer required due to the 'rationalisation of the immigration detention network', immigration minister said
the Guardian -
5
Reality of the boat people solution to the asylum seeker problem
Julian Burnside QC challenges both major parties to stop behaving badly when it comes to boat people, offering a policy solution that puts humanity first.
The Big Smoke -
6
Nauru Regional Processing Centre - Wikipedia
Wikipedia
Rating Scale Methodology
1-3: FALSE
Factually incorrect or malicious fabrication.
4-6: PARTIAL
Some truth but context is missing or skewed.
7-9: MOSTLY TRUE
Minor technicalities or phrasing issues.
10: ACCURATE
Perfectly verified and contextually fair.
Methodology: Ratings are determined through cross-referencing official government records, independent fact-checking organizations, and primary source documents.