The Abbott government claims its tough stance on asylum seekers has enabled it to fulfil a pledge to "stop the boats". Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young said Mr Dutton must "stop keeping the Australian public in the dark and tell us exactly what is going on. "The secrecy and arrogance displayed by this government are so extreme that it's nearly farcical: either there is a boat or there is not," she said in a statement. "This isn't a matter of national security; this is about ensuring that vulnerable people are not mistreated under a veil of secrecy. "If a boat has been found, the government should tell us who is on board, if there are women and children, and what they intended to do with these people."

A spokesman for the Dampier Seafarers Centre told Fairfax Media he believed an asylum seeker boat was sighted by crew on the Modec Venture MV11 structure, about 90 kilometres off the coast. He said there were conflicting reports the boat was either moored to the structure, or floating nearby. He said the centre's chaplain, the Reverend Ian McGilvray, was speaking to customs officials about providing assistance. "[Mr McGilvray] does ship visitations, he's speaking with customs at the moment to try and confirm some details," the spokesman said. "[The suspected asylum seekers] have just been on long voyage, very dangerous. [Mr McGilvray] likes to get out there and have a chat with people and see how they are going." The spokesman said reports of the boat's arrival began filtering in early on Monday morning. He said the centre traditionally assists sailors and not asylum seekers.

West Australian Premier Colin Barnett said state police were handling the situation until the navy was able to take over. Mr Barnett said it was always concerning when asylum seeker boats got close to shore, but the matter was under control. "The West Australian police is looking after that situation until the Commonwealth naval vessel arrives, so the situation is in order," he said. "This boat, while it's approaching our coast, it's well offshore and it's under surveillance." It had been reported that the Australian Maritime Safety Authority would fly out to assess the situation, but the authority declined to comment.

The ABC reports it is understood the police boat Delphinus has been deployed to search for the boat. The Modec Venture MV11 operation is run by energy giant Santos. A Santos spokeswoman said Modec was a contractor, but would not comment on the boat reports, instead referring all inquiries to the Australian Border Force. The Australian Border Force referred inquiries to Mr Dutton's office With AAP