Australia's treatment of Manus Island asylum seekers slammed by UNHCR

The United Nations refugee agency has slammed Australia's treatment of asylum seekers on Manus Island and called for future processing to be moved to mainland Australia.

The future of the roughly 600 men left on Manus remains in limbo after their refusal to leave the processing centre amid fears for their safety.

"We urge the Australian Government to transfer the men to mainland Australia where their claims can be properly processed," UNHCR senior spokesperson Babar Baloch said in Geneva.

"We urge the governments of Australia and Papua New Guinea to fully respect their human rights, including their specific rights under refugee law."

Basic services such as water, electricity and medical services have all been cut off after its closure last Tuesday.

"There are a lot of worries about the health of these asylum and refugees too. The last food distribution was on Sunday."

Opposition leader Bill Shorten has called on the Turnbull government to consider an offer from New Zealand to resettle 150 asylum seekers, a move which Immigration Minister Peter Dutton has labelled as a "cheap political stunt".

On Thursday, during an appearance on the Today Show, Mr Dutton said he wanted to see Manus closed 'as quickly as possible'.

"It doesn't help when you've got the Greens and others who are telling people not to engage, not to move. It makes a very difficult situation even worse."

The criticism from the UNHCR comes weeks after Australia won its bid to for a position on the United Nations' Human Rights Council which is slated to start on the 1st of January next year.