The New Zealand prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, has lashed Scott Morrison for “testing” the friendship between the two nations, accusing Australia of deporting “your people and your problems” using “unfair” policies.
Ardern took her strongest stance yet opposing Australia’s policy of deporting New Zealand citizens, no matter how long they had spent in Australia, if they had committed a crime.
Standing next to an uncomfortable Australian prime minister, Ardern warned she did not wish to see the traditional allies engage in a tit-for-tat “race to the bottom” over the controversial policy, but warned she would not let the matter drop.
New Zealand, she said, took into account a person’s ties to the nation and did not deport those “considered for all intents and purposes to have established themselves as New Zealanders”.
Australia needed to do the same, Ardern argued.
“I’m not asking that Australia stops the policy,” she said.
“You have deported more than 2,000 individuals, and among them will be genuine Kiwis who do need to learn the consequences of their actions.
“But among those 2,000 are individuals who are too young to become criminals on our watch, they were too young to become patched gang members, too young to be organised criminals.
“We will own our people. We ask that Australia stops exporting theirs.
“I want to conclude by just reaffirming something I have said often. We will continue to maintain rights for Australians in New Zealand.
“We do not wish to have a race to the bottom. We do remain confident that in time by working together we will find solutions that reaffirm just how important our relationship is to us. And testament to that relationship is the fact that we can raise these issues frankly and we do.”
Ardern said her evisceration was not without warning, having told Morrison the same thing in private. But she said New Zealand would not stand for a lack of respect in the relationship, citing cases of people who had moved to Australia when they were one week old being deported back to their birth land.
“Australia is well within its rights to deport individuals who break your laws. New Zealand does the same. But we have a simple request – send back Kiwis. Genuine Kiwis. Do not deport your people and your problems.”
Morrison said Australia had no plans to abandon the policy. “The Australian government’s policy is very clear,” he said.
“We deport non-citizens who have committed crimes in Australia against our community.
“This policy is applied not specific to one country, but to any country whose citizens are here. You commit a crime here, if convicted, once you have done your time, we send you home.
“And we would have no objection to any country – anywhere – who would apply the same rule in terms of Australian citizens who commit crimes in other places. We would think that was totally understandable and we wouldn’t take any offence.”
Ardern listened to Morrison’s explanation and said he had solved the issue himself.
“The prime minister used a key word in his reference just now – he said that after they have served their time he sends them ‘home’,” she said.
“The example I used demonstrates that we have countless who have no home in New Zealand, they have no network, they have grown up in Australia. That is their home. And that is where they should stay.”
The issue has been a point of simmering tension between the two nations for years, but has heated up considerably in recent times, becoming an election issue for Ardern, with New Zealand police pointing to the policy as one of the reasons for a rise in domestic criminal gang activity.
While Ardern has vowed to continue fighting against the policy, now having raised the prospect of returning Australians in the same position, Morrison was just as determined to stand his ground, and said policy was not country-specific.
“Kiwis become citizens. Indians become citizens. Chinese nationals become citizens,” he said.
“And when you become a citizen, well, you have joined the club and if you violate our laws at that point, then that is on our watch and Australia has to take care of those situations.
“But if you’re a non-citizen, our very clear view – and our government is well-known for our clear views when it comes to issues of immigration and border security – if you have committed a crime and you’re not a citizen of Australia, then you have no right to stay.”