The Senate has extended its demand for documents surrounding Operation Sovereign Borders, formally ordering the Abbott government to explain how many lifeboats it purchased, the cost and the procurement process.



It follows the upper house’s attempt last year to secure information about asylum-seeker operations, which the government rejected on the basis of “public interest immunity”. That triggered a Senate committee hearing last month at which senior customs, defence and immigration officials joined the immigration minister, Scott Morrison, in stressing the need to avoid providing information about events at sea that could help people smugglers.

Labor and the Greens maintain a combined majority in the Senate until the composition changes in July this year.

On Wednesday the chamber passed a motion designed to scrutinise Australia’s purchase and use of lifeboats to send asylum seekers back towards Indonesia.

The motion demands “documents detailing the number and cost of the lifeboats purchased by the Australian government for use in border protection operations, including the cost of any upgrades or alterations; the number of lifeboats remaining in the Australian government’s possession; and details of the procurement process for these lifeboats in accordance with the Commonwealth procurement rules”.

Michaelia Cash, who represents Morrison in the Senate, has been asked to comply by noon on Thursday.

The Labor frontbencher who moved the motion, Kim Carr, said the government should comply with the request in order to be open about the expenditure of taxpayers’ money.

“There is a fundamental responsibility of members of parliament to ask questions about the expenditure of public money. It is a fundamental requirement particularly in the Senate to pursue questions of public accountability,” Carr said.

“If we are now spending very large sums of public money on the provision to actually put people into these vessels [and] tow them for some days then I think we’re entitled to know what the cost is; how do we assess its effectiveness if we don’t know the costs involved?”

Fairfax Media reported this week that the Chinese-made lifeboats – of which Australia has bought about 12 – cost about $46,000 each plus equipment and modifications. They were believed to be written off after a single use.

It is believed several of the bright orange lifeboats have landed in Indonesia. Reports suggest asylum seekers are transferred to the enclosed vessels at sea and sent back towards Indonesia.

The government has confirmed the purchase of lifeboats, but not the number of vessels it acquired, or the number still available for use.

The prime minister, Tony Abbott, was asked on 1 February about the published photo of a lifeboat that washed up in Java. He said the government was determined to send a message to people seeking to come to Australia by boat that the “way is closed”. He argued the government’s policies were working.

The Senate also passed a motion on Wednesday demanding the tabling of the report produced by Catherine Livingstone, Dick Warburton and Greg Combet on proposed government assistance to SPC Ardmona. The government asked the panel to assess the cannery’s request for a $25m federal grant. It has been widely reported the panel recommended government support. The cabinet resolved to reject the request, drawing a line in the sand on industry assistance.