“He claimed that unnamed ‘actual experts’ had advised him against holding a commonwealth royal commission. Today he refuses to say who those experts actually are,” Ley told journalists on Wednesday.
“Is the prime minister hiding behind a smoke screen? Is he using national security as a political shield? Australians deserve straight answers. Does this advice exist? What is the prime minister hiding,” Ley said.
The Richardson review sits alongside other federal measures announced in response to the Bondi attack including a pledge to strengthen hate speech legislation, tougher gun import laws and a national buyback scheme. Albanese also pledged to adopt many – but not all – of the recommendations Australia’s special envoy to combat antisemitism, Jillian Segal, submitted to the government six months ago.
The review is charged with analysing the effectiveness, powers and processes of security and law enforcement agencies, as well as the information known about the attackers before December 14. However, the terms of reference do not address antisemitism or violent extremism.
Richardson inquiry’s terms of reference
Dennis Richardson, former ASIO chief and secretary of defence and foreign affairs departments, will report in April on whether ASIO and the Australian Federal Police did all they could in the context of the Bondi terrorist attack and if information sharing between agencies was adequate. The review will examine
- what relevant Commonwealth agencies knew about the alleged offenders before the attack, and when
- the interaction and information sharing between Commonwealth agencies, and between Commonwealth and state and territory agencies
- what judgements were made and actions taken by relevant agencies
- whether there were any additional measures that relevant Commonwealth agencies could have taken to prevent the terrorist attack
- whether relevant Commonwealth agencies were prevented from taking prohibitive actions by the current legislative framework and authorising environment
- what additional measures, if any, should be taken by relevant Commonwealth agencies to prevent similar attacks occurring in the future:
- whether they have adequate legislative powers, the right systems, processes and procedures, and an appropriate authorising environment for information sharing with other federal and state and territory agencies
- whether warrant and data access regimes and powers are adequate
- whether any legislative amendments are required.
Peter Wertheim, co-head of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, said the review’s terms of reference were “too narrowly focused” on intelligence and law enforcement agencies, and omitted the “wider context in which those agencies operate”.
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“To get to the heart of the matter there needs to be an honest examination of government policies and the conduct and policies of key institutions and figures in major sectors of our society. Their contribution to the unprecedented levels of antisemitism in this country over the last two years must be addressed,” he said, arguing that the proposed royal commission was the only way to tackle the issues.
“What might emerge could indeed be divisive and ugly but the divisiveness and ugliness is already there. Confronting these demons will be cathartic. It’s our only hope of establishing a new national consensus and setting clear standards.”
Jeremy Leibler, the president of the Zionist Federation of Australia, said the terms of reference not mentioning antisemitism or Jewish Australians was “indefensible”.
“The problem with the federal government establishing only the Richardson review and not a royal commission is that Richardson is directed only to look at the security agencies response, and not at all on any of the underlying root causes of the problems of antisemitism,” he said.
Under questioning on Monday about the omission of the word “antisemitism” from the review’s terms of reference, Albanese said: “the whole framework is about that”.
“It will look at a comprehensive examination of what occurred, if there are any gaps, if there are any gaps between the Commonwealth and New South Wales as well, what response is required thoroughly, practically and efficiently reporting in months, not years ahead, acting with unity and urgency, not division and delay,” Albanese said.
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Industry Minister Tim Ayres on Wednesday said the review would be “more far-reaching” than a royal commission, which he said would “be a symbolic approach about division and delay, rather than an approach that is about getting practical responses right now”.
“The Richardson report will report in a few months, not in a few years. It will deliver a broad and effective and pragmatic assessment of what is required from Australia’s security agencies to strengthen our overall response and harden Australia’s capability to deal with these kinds of terrorist attacks,” Ayres told Sky News.
On Wednesday 16 December, Jewish organisations including the Australian Union of Jewish Students and the Rabbinical Council of Australia penned an open letter demanding a federal royal commission. It comes after similar letters were published from 17 victim’s families.
Bondi Beach incident helplines:
- Bondi Beach Victim Services on 1800 411 822
- Bondi Beach Public Information & Enquiry Centre on 1800 227 228
- NSW Mental Health Line on 1800 011 511 or Lifeline on 13 11 14
- Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800 or chat online at kidshelpline.com.au
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