PRIME Minister Kevin Rudd may have neutralised Labor's biggest policy weakness by declaring Australia will never again receive asylum seekers coming by boat.
The hardline plan to force all boat arrivals to Papua New Guinea for processing and resettlement is aimed at removing incentives for people to take the dangerous journey to Australia.
The boat problem was the last major policy issue for Rudd to resolve, after ticking off Labor party reforms and announcing he would "terminate" the fixed carbon price, ahead of the federal election.
The resettlement plan appears to have taken the coalition by surprise, even though Opposition Leader Tony Abbott admits it's a "very promising development".
It may force Abbott to rethink his own asylum policies, which now appear considerably softer than what Rudd is proposing.
But big questions remain over how much the plan will cost and whether it will smash the people smuggling businesses operating out of Indonesia.
As well, conditions at Australia's Manus Island processing centre in PNG aren't yet up to scratch.
Construction work has been painfully slow, with 215 people currently being housed in temporary tents and former staff at the centre, refugee advocates and the High Commissioner for Refugees describe living conditions as "harsh".
A permanent 600-bed facility isn't due for completion until January.
Litigation could also impede the success of the Australia-PNG deal.
PNG's opposition party has unsuccessfully mounted a legal challenge to the country's Manus Island centre, but that won't stop another challenge.
Australian human rights lawyers may also head to the courts to argue the government is breaching Australia's international obligations under the United Nations Refugee Convention.
Rudd's pledge to review the arrangement in 12 months may also backfire, as it could give people smugglers hope it might be overturned.
As the prime minister has conceded, people smugglers may try to "test our resolve" by bombarding Australia with a wave of boats - before PNG is in a position to accommodate all the new arrivals.
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