Q. Do you approve or disapprove of the announcement by the Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, that all asylum seekers arriving in Australia by boat will be sent to New Guinea for processing and none will be resettled in Australia?

61% approve of the announcement that all asylum seekers arriving in Australia by boat will be sent to New Guinea for processing and none will be resettled in Australia and 28% disapprove.

75% of Labor voters and 58% of Liberal/National voters approve but 62% of Greens voters disapprove. A majority of all demographic groups approved – those most likely to disapprove were respondents with university degrees (54% approve/35% disapprove).

Of those who think the asylum seeker issue is one of or the most important election issue, 71% approve and 25% disapprove.

Q. Which party has the best policy for handling the issue of asylum seekers arriving by boat?

38% think the Liberal Party has the best policy for handling the issue of asylum seekers arriving by boat and 13% think the Labor Party has the best policy. 31% think no party has the best policy.

Only 36% of Labor voters think the Labor Party has the best policy compared with 74% of Liberal/National voters who think the Liberals have the best policy.

Of those who think the asylum seeker issue is one of or the most important election issue, 59% think that the Liberals have the best policy, 12% think Labor has the best policy and 18% think none of them do.