The opposition has labelled Prime Minister Kevin Rudd a border protection sceptic and claims the upsurge in asylum seekers will cause a $1 billion budget blowout.
The government on Tuesday moved to shut down debate on the asylum seeker issue as pressure mounts over a sharp increase in arrivals that is straining detention facilities on Christmas Island.
There are now 1977 people in detention on Christmas Island which can accommodate a maximum of about 2040.
Two more refugee boats are expected to arrive in Australian waters in coming days.
In a heated Parliamentary session following question time on Tuesday, opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison said the Labor government under Mr Rudd had become "border protection sceptics".
Mr Morrison said that based on evidence provided in a Senate estimates hearing last month, every new boat arrival was costing taxpayers up to $3.6 million.
"The cost of this government's failed border protection policy on the budget over the forward estimates is $1 billion," he said.
The opposition maintains the Rudd government's decision to wind back elements of the Howard government's border protection regime is responsible for an increase in the number of asylum seekers coming to Australia.
So far this year, 24 asylum seeker boats have been intercepted in Australian waters.
But the government says the situation was much worse under the last, coalition, government.
Home Affairs Minister Brendan O'Connor said that if the measure of the border protection strengths of a government was based on arrivals, the Howard government was the weakest government in 30 years.
"Prime Minister Howard and the minister for immigration at the time really get the gold, silver and bronze medal for the highest years of arrivals in our history.
"This opposition is about rank opportunism ... they're about demonising people who are desperate and seeking asylum from persecution."
Mr O'Connor made the comments before the government used its numbers to shut down a parliamentary debate on the issue which had been called by the opposition following question time.
Earlier in the day, Mr Rudd told parliament the highest number of boats arriving in any one month was in 1999, when John Howard was prime minister.
"The highest number of boats arriving in any one year was, in fact, in the year 1999 when 3700 asylum seekers arrived on 86 boats.
"The highest number of asylum seekers arriving in Australia in any one year ... was in 2001 under the previous Howard government.
"In November 1999, there were 14 boat arrivals, the highest number of boats in any one month on record."
Mr Rudd said his government was dealing with the surge in asylum seekers in a practical way.
"These are practical challenges faced by governments across the world," he said.
"We continue to maintain a policy which includes offshore processing, which includes mandatory detention, which includes stringent health, identity and security checks which protect our national security."
The government has also rejected reports it was preparing to transfer hundreds of asylum seekers from Christmas Island to a detention facility in Darwin.
A spokesman for Immigration Minister Chris Evans said the government had stated repeatedly for many months that Darwin may be used to accommodate detainees in the final stages of processing.
"No decision has been taken to use Darwin or any other mainland facility," the spokesman said.
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