Nationals leader David Littleproud claims Peter Dutton’s political opponents trying to paint him as racist

David Littleproud has launched a spirited defence of his Coalition partner Peter Dutton, claiming the Federal Liberal leader was being unfairly painted as a racist for calling for a temporary ban on visas for people from war-torn Gaza. “They’re trying to paint him as a racist, and this (is) abhorrent, absolutely abhorrent,” Mr Littleproud said, speaking on Saturday in Perth. “The leadership that we’re showing is one of common sense. “It was a solution — to actually continue to bring people into this country safely and to be able to ensure that we all enjoy the life that we have now. “How can that be racist? How can that?” Labor, the Greens, Teal Independent MPs and Muslim groups have condemned Mr Dutton for arguing no Palestinians fleeing the Gaza war zone should be allowed into Australia “at the moment”, citing national security fears. Mr Dutton said he was not satisfied there was sufficient screening in place to ensure those fleeing Gaza were not associated with terrorist activities. On Saturday, Mr Littleproud said the “prime responsibility” was to “keep Australians safe”. “The National Party and the Liberal Party still welcome immigrants of Islamic faith in this country,” Mr Littleproud said. “All we are saying is that when you are bringing people from a war zone, there should be increased measures in terms of assessment, their ability to contribute to this country. “That’s all we’ve asked for. And for the Greens and the Teals to seek some sort of opportunity to paint Peter Dutton as the bogeyman is just nonsense. “The reality is our primary responsibility is to keep Australians safe, and this is a very fluid situation.” Mr Littleproud claimed the Albanese Government had dropped the ball in terms of processes to properly vet people wanting to come to Australia from the war zone. “The government, under their own admission, have not kept protocols and processes that we had in place in making the assessments of who come to this country,” Mr Littleproud said. “And when you overlay that with the domestic situation here in Australia, where we have communities tearing themselves apart, we need to be extra careful about who we bring into this country. “That’s nothing outrageous that Peter Dutton and the Coalition have suggested. It’s prudent. It’s sensible.” Mr Littleproud said several measures needed to be taken before accepting Palestinians from Gaza. “He (Mr Dutton) has outlined three measures that need to be put in place that will give us comfort,” he said. “That is either biometric, a face-to-face interview of these people when they come in. “They took away the temporary protection visas, which you now see there is a necessity for. We’ve got them coming in on holiday visas. “So if the government wanted to work with us instead of digging on things, we could find a solution. “But let me tell you that Peter Dutton and the Coalition are prepared for more than what Palestine’s own neighbours have agreed. Egypt, Jordan will not take any refugees. “ Prime Minister Anthony Albanese this week accused Mr Dutton of “always looking for division”. “We take our advice from the director general of ASIO and the security agencies, not from someone always looking for a fight, always looking for division,” Mr Albanese said. Labor minister Bill Shorten also weighed in on the political storm. “We currently have a process where ASIO vet people, where we have national security checking and, memo to Peter Dutton, we’re using the same process that he used,” Mr Shorten said. “So if he thinks our current process is no good, then what’s he saying about all the time he was in charge”.