Allegra Spender (Wentworth, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to speak in support of the Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism (Criminal and Migration Laws) Bill 2026. These are modest changes in this bill, but they are necessary. But let us be completely honest: neither this bill nor any of the actions of the parliament to date will eradicate antisemitism or keep the Jewish community safe in the future. There is much, much more work that needs to be done.

The fourteenth of December is one of the darkest days in modern Australian history, and it is a day that my community, Jewish and non-Jewish, will never, ever forget. Fifteen innocent people were violently murdered while celebrating their Jewish faith, customs and community. It was an attack on Jewish Australians and it was an attack on all of us as a country and all of our Australian values.

We know that violence does not start with weapons. It starts with words. It starts with hate. I acknowledge that in this bill there are some important steps to deal with the spread of hate, which leads to the spread of violence. I support the bill. I support the aggravated offences measures, particularly for hate preachers. I support the strengthened measures in relation to hate symbols. I support the actions in relation to hate preachers, and I support the fact that the home affairs minister now has the framework to proscribe certain groups—which should include, in my mind, groups like the National Socialist Network and Neo-Nazis and Hizb ut-Tahrir, who openly spread and promote virulent antisemitism as well as vile hatred against other groups in our country. These groups do not merely offend; they normalise dehumanisation and incitement. Their rhetoric corrodes our social fabric and creates a condition in which violence becomes possible.

But let's be honest: this bill does not get to the heart of what I believe we need to do as a country. There is extremism in Australia. There is Islamic extremism. There is Neo-Nazi extremism. These ideologies are a direct threat to Jewish Australians, and they are a threat to all of us. But this is not only a question of immediate security; it's also a profound challenge to our social cohesion. When parliament fails to address the direct causes of extremism and hatred, entire communities end up carrying the blame for the actions of a violent, extreme minority. This is what deeply concerns me about the current trajectory of our national conversation. Muslims and migrants are increasingly made to feel suspect by association. By failing to confront hateful individuals and ideologies directly, we drift towards a culture of guilt by association rather than accountability. We know that radicalisation thrives in environments where blameless people are persistently blamed, excluded or treated as inherently suspect. This is the consequence of a parliament that has failed to legislate clear standards of behaviour and failed to draw strong lines between what is offending, what is disagreeing and what is directly promoting and inciting hatred in our country.

I talk to the coalition here because the coalition has rightly spoken up on antisemitism very strongly for the last two years, and I commend it for that. But, when it comes to actions, it has not followed through, and the coalition could have and should have supported laws against vilification that the Jewish community called for before 14 December and is calling for even more strongly now. We do need to protect the Jewish community. I have had people come up to me constantly, saying: 'How is it possible, Allegra, that somebody can call for the final solution to the Jews without this being an offence in this country? How can people hatefully target the Jewish community in their words, when we know that words lead to action, without this being an offence in our country?'

We do have stronger laws, but they are a patchwork across our country, and this is the opportunity for the federal parliament to lead. But I do believe that the coalition has really stepped back from what the Jewish community has deliberately asked you for in this case, and that is a terrible shame. So when I hear the words—and I hear them constantly, and I think they are well meant—saying there is no place for extremism and that we need to stamp this out, my question is: what other mechanisms are you saying we can use now? You have rejected something that the Jewish community has been calling for for a long time. I put that forward in the previous parliament, and you also rejected it then.

The final thing I want to say is that we have a long road ahead of us. The security of the Jewish community is absolutely critical. The antisemitism envoy's packages and the actions taken there are absolutely critical. The royal commission is critical. But we also need to lead a better conversation in this country about how we disagree well, and I think that means drawing bright lines against hatred.

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