When the Abbott government assumed office in September 2013, it appeared that its Labor predecessor had already implemented key aspects of the Coalition’s asylum seeker policy. Asylum seekers were being detained in Nauru and Manus Island (Papua New Guinea) as they had been under the Howard government’s Pacific Solution. The detention facility built at great expense by the Howard government in the remote territory of Christmas Island had become established as a key site for processing those who seek Australia’s protection as refugees. The Gillard government had even completed the process of effectively excising mainland Australia from the migration zone, a step which the Howard government attempted unsuccessfully (and amidst great controversy) in 2006. In light of the stark similarities between the two major parties’ policies, it might appear that little would have changed under the new Abbott administration.