Two more asylum seeker boats intercepted

Two more asylum seeker boats have been intercepted north of Christmas Island, with
one boat towing the other.
The arrival on Friday morning is being regarded as a single suspected irregular
entry vessel with 74 passengers and three crew on board, a Border Protection Command
spokeswoman said.
"The group will be transferred to Christmas Island where they will undergo security,
identity and health checks and their reasons for travel will be established," the
spokeswoman said.
The boats were intercepted by HMAS Bundaberg, operating under the control of Border
Protection Command, and will be counted as the 102nd arrival this year.
Opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison said he would be counting the
arrival as two.
"It's a double header, which follows another arrival in the same 24-hour period," he
told AAP.
"It's been peak hour, effectively, with the arrival of these boats in the last day
we are really back to business as usual following the election.
"This just means further tension and pressure within an already overcrowded
detention network, created by failed policies."
On Thursday night an Australian Customs vessel intercepted a boat suspected of
carrying 56 asylum seekers near Scott Reef, off Western Australia's northwest coast.
The boat, manned by two crew, initially was detected by a RAAF P3 surveillance
aircraft operating under the control of Border Protection Command.