Labor and Coalition pass deportation laws set to make Nauru a ‘penal colony’ for Australia, critics say. By Sarah Basford Canales and Ben Doherty, The Guardian

The major parties have been accused of “stitching up” a deal to transform Nauru into Australia’s “dumping ground and penal colony” as parliament passed laws stripping basic legal rights from a group of noncitizens set to be deported.

The home affairs legislation passed the Senate on Thursday, after a snap three-hour parliamentary hearing the night before.

The bill amends the Migration Act “to provide that the rules of natural justice do not apply” for noncitizens on a removal pathway and validates government visa decisions – made before the high court’s NZYQ ruling in November 2023 – that could subsequently have been deemed unlawful.

Labor and Coalition pass deportation laws set to make Nauru a ‘penal colony’ for Australia, critics say. By Sarah Basford Canales and Ben Doherty, The Guardian