Refugee advocates ‘encouraged’ as Albanese government considers ways to reduce immigration detention backlog

Immigration minister Andrew Giles says the government is committed to ‘humane and risk-based immigration detention policies’. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP

The Albanese government is investigating alternatives to immigration detention, and considering the creation of a review panel to help clear the “intractable” caseload of people held for long periods.

Refugee and asylum seeker stakeholders report that the immigration minister, Andrew Giles, and the Department of Home Affairs have been “proactive” in consultations and there are already “encouraging” signs more people assessed as a low risk to the community are being released.