The decision to keep a Tamil family on Christmas Island as they fight deportation to Sri Lanka is reviewed monthly by Home Affairs.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The family of four includes two young children, who previously lived in the rural Queensland town of Biloela.
They have been detained on Christmas Island since last year as they fight deportation.
Australian Border Force commissioner Michael Outram argues the remote island is the best place for the family to stay, for not only their safety and wellbeing but of the officers at the facility.
"Our view - this decision is reviewed monthly by our detention operations group - is the best place to keep them for a whole range of reasons is on Christmas Island," he told a Senate estimates hearing on Monday.
Mr Outram said the family was being well looked after and can visit the local township daily.
Senior ABF official Graeme Grosse rejected recent reports the family have to share one bed.
He said they had two bedrooms.
The family are escorted by guards when they leave the facility, including when the daughters attend school.
"The guards are not in uniform and they maintain a discreet distance," Mr Grosse said.
The Morrison government is appealing the family's Federal Court win from earlier this year, where it was found one daughter was denied procedural fairness in making a protection visa application, which would have allowed her to remain in Australia.
Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has previously accused the family of "playing funny games" through the courts to prevent their detention and costing taxpayers a fortune, putting the process at more than $10 million.
The family has lost several bids for refugee status.
Australian Associated Press