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Support for Sending Asylum Seekers to Malaysia

1 Aug 2011

Q. The Government has recently made an agreement to send asylum seekers arriving by boat in Australia to Malaysia for processing, and in return Australia will take a fixed number of refugees from Malaysia. Do you support or oppose this agreement?

16 June 11 Total Vote Labor Vote Lib/Nat Vote Greens
Total support 40% 31% 50% 25% 19%
Total oppose 39% 53% 31% 67% 60%
Strongly support 13% 6% 9% 4% 3%
Support 27% 25% 41% 21% 16%
Oppose 22% 23% 17% 24% 35%
Strongly oppose 17% 30% 14% 43% 25%
Don’t know 21% 16% 18% 9% 21%

31% support the agreement to send asylum seekers to Malaysia for processing and 53% oppose. This represents a significant increase in opposition to this scheme from that recorded 6 weeks ago – support is down 9% and opposition up 14%.

This shift is mainly due to changed opinions of Liberal/National voters. Support from Labor voters is up 3% to 50% while opposition from Liberal/National voters has increased by 22% to 67%. Opposition from Greens voters has also increased by 9% to 60%.

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