Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism (Criminal and Migration Laws)

“That this bill now be read a second time.”

Australian Labor Party • Senator • 20 Jan 2026

“That is why we need legislation that gives powers to this parliament and the parliaments that follow to protect the good people of this nation from the evil ones, be they born here or born somewhere else. These laws are needed to protect us from the ones filled with hate, from the ones spewing their vile hatred into our community. That is why I speak in support of the Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism (Criminal and Migration Laws) Bill 2026 this evening.”

Australian Labor Party • Senator • 20 Jan 2026

“That's the Australia we know. That's the Australia we must stand up for and protect. That is why these reforms matter—to draw a clear line in the sand that hate won't be excused or allowed to grow unchecked. I commend the bill to the Senate.”

Australian Labor Party • Senator • 20 Jan 2026

“I rise today in support of the Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism (Criminal and Migration Laws) Bill 2026. On 14 December last year, Australians experienced the worst terrorist attack on Australian soil at Bondi Beach. Fifteen people were murdered by terrorists with hate in their minds and guns in their hands. The impact of that day will stay with us for a very, very long time.”

Australian Labor Party • Senator • 20 Jan 2026

“Organisations that proffer hateful ideologies must be outlawed and their members held accountable. We know one such group has already announced an intention to disband in anticipation of the effectiveness of these laws. Our Senate, our parliament, can send a strong message to a grieving nation tonight, and we must. We stand together against hate, and, together, light will prevail over darkness. I commend the bill to the Senate.”

Australian Labor Party • Senator • 20 Jan 2026

“This is a sensible bill. I commend it to the House, and I hope it receives support from across the parliament.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 20 Jan 2026

“This bill does not do everything—no single piece of legislation ever does—but it does something important. It moves the law forward. It responds to a real threat. The Jewish community has asked this parliament to act. This government has listened. Where consensus was possible, we have sought it. Where delay would have left Australians less safe, we have chosen progress. I commend this bill wholeheartedly to the Senate.”

Australian Labor Party • Senator • 20 Jan 2026

“But these bills as they stand will have a significant impact, and I commend them to the House.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 20 Jan 2026

“This legislation strengthens penalties for those who incite hatred and violence. It provides law enforcement with clearer tools to intervene earlier. It criminalises organised hate groups that exist to radicalise, recruit and intimidate. It holds leaders and authority figures to account when they abuse positions of trust to spread hate, and it recognises and criminalises the serious harm caused when adults deliberately radicalise children. I support this legislation, as should everyone in this place.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 20 Jan 2026

“There are key reforms presented in this bill that I want to highlight because a few constituents have reached out to me with claims about the bill's effects that are untrue and inflammatory. Such claims stem from online disinformation and, sometimes, from those across the chamber. I'm glad we've come together as a parliament to make these changes. Let's be clear about what they do and not fall into a dangerous echo chamber that seeks only to divide this nation.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 20 Jan 2026

“This bill, the Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism (Criminal and Migration Laws) Bill 2026, is about combating antisemitism. It's about combating hate. It's about making sure that we have legislation that backs in those Australian values that we hold so dear in this country. These reforms are about making sure that another piece of the puzzle is put in place so that this never happens again. It's a bill that will introduce new aggravated offences to ensure that very serious penalties apply to those in positions of influence and authority who commit hate crimes. It's a bill to ensure that we have increased penalties for the offences involving advocating or threatening force or violence against protected groups, members of groups, their close associates and their property.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 20 Jan 2026

“Antisemitism, hate and extremism have no place in Australia, and I certainly support any changes that will help ensure that no parent or family experiences the trauma of Bondi again. This bill is about confronting extremism, protecting social cohesion and safeguarding our communities. It is about protecting the loss of life, preventing violence and hate. This bill, together with related firearms and customs law reforms, delivers strong, targeted action against those who spread hate and violence. The bill strengthens hate crime laws by introducing aggravated offences for those in positions of influence, including religious leaders who advocate violence and adults who radicalise children. These provisions reflect the serious harm caused when authority is being abused. Penalties for hate crimes will be increased to ensure they reflect the gravity of these offences.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 20 Jan 2026

“Let's see this as an opportunity for us to unite as a nation, to come together and grieve with our Jewish Australian community and to reaffirm that in this great country of ours, whatever issues we confront, there's still no other country you'd rather be in. That's the nature of our great nation. Light will triumph over darkness. I thank the House—and I thank the Senate as well—for the adoption of these laws.”

Australian Labor Party • MP • 20 Jan 2026

“I rise in support of the Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism (Criminal and Migration Laws) Bill 2026, taking on board Senator Payman's comments. I listened very carefully to Senator Payman's speech. I do so because I believe this bill is in the national interest. I sincerely believe there's an imperative that we pass this bill, and I believe there's a great risk—some people have been talking about the risks in some of these provisions, the risks of the process et cetera. I say: consider the risk of us not passing this bill. Consider the risk of us not including these additional offences in the Criminal Code. Consider the risks of us not strengthening the visa cancellation and refusal processes in the Migration Act. Consider how those risks could be manifested again in the future, as they were on the beach at Bondi on 14 December. That is a risk we have to all carefully consider. In doing so, and after great careful consideration, I support this bill. I sincerely believe this bill is in the national interest and in the interests of all Australians.”

Liberal Party of Australia • Senator • 20 Jan 2026

“Australia is a free country, but it is not a sanctuary for extremists, and it should not be a safe operating environment for vile extremist hate groups. Australians want to see Islamic hate preachers gone, they want to see the minister given the ability to ban Hizb ut-Tahrir and they want Neo-Nazis off our streets. These laws will achieve that, and that's why I'm supporting them.”

Liberal Party of Australia • Senator • 20 Jan 2026

“I now turn to the criminal law provisions that remain before the House and which we support, in principle—subject to the safeguards and amendments we've sought, to ensure these measures are targeted, proportionate and lawful. Schedule 1, part 1 introduces new aggravated offences for religious, spiritual or other leaders who provide religious instruction or pastoral care, applying to the existing offence of threatening force or violence under part 5.1 of the Criminal Code. Religious leaders occupy a position of trust and authority. With that influence comes a higher duty of care and a greater responsibility. This is a sensible and overdue deterrent, particularly against radical Islamic preachers and other figures who exploit religious settings to radicalise, groom and incite violence. The message must be unmistakable: abusing religious authority and using the pulpit to threaten force or violence will attract serious criminal consequences. Importantly, we ensured that this provision captures anyone who stands up in a religious setting and promotes extremist violence, whether or not they hold a formal religious title.”

Liberal Party of Australia • MP • 20 Jan 2026

“The migration amendments in this bill sharpen the focus of existing character powers so that they clearly capture extremist advocacy and antisemitic behaviour, including where that conduct occurs online offshore. Antisemitism today is often transnational in nature, spread through digital platforms, imported through overseas networks and amplified by individuals who have no permanent stake in Australia. The coalition supports clearer grounds for refusing or cancelling visas where a noncitizen has demonstrated that they promote racial or ethnic hatred. We have pushed for additional safeguards to address the risks, and we have worked to ensure that there are additional protections contained in the legislation.”

Liberal Party of Australia • MP • 20 Jan 2026

“As I said, Bondi represents a moment of choice, and the choice the Liberal Party makes this morning, as we have always done, is to stand with the Jewish community and law-abiding Australians. It's the choice to be constructive, to pass this legislation as a step in the right direction. That's the choice the Liberal Party has made. But the choice for the government of the day does not end today. The choice for the Albanese government is in the implementation. The test for the government is how it uses these new laws. It must expel or jail hate preachers. It must list Hizb ut-Tahrir and its prayer halls. It must protect our borders from radical Islamists and the insidious propagandists who use Jews as a way of attacking Australia. It's a choice that doesn't end with these laws. The government must root out antisemitism from our schools, from academia and the universities, from the arts, from the trade union movement and from its own political base. Unless we do that, Bondi will not be the end of the story; it will be the midpoint of a story that gets so much worse.”

Liberal Party of Australia • MP • 20 Jan 2026

“The Jewish community has expressed their anger that the firearm provisions were a deliberate distraction from the broader issue. I'm happy to support the migration amendments, but the minister already has wide-ranging powers. The minister has been using them, of course, and we know he's been using them against Israeli visas. My hope is that he will use them against those who preach Islamic hatred and extremism instead.”

Liberal Party of Australia • MP • 20 Jan 2026

“The amendments proposed are reasonable and proportionate by the coalition, and they will enhance the ability of the government to cancel the visas of those who engage in antisemitic rhetoric, Islamic extremism—which is the extremism underpinning Islamic State and other terrorist organisations—and other extremist ideologies which pose a risk of harm to the Australian people. This is not about politics; it's about community safety, confidence in the rule of law, standing with Jewish Australians and confronting Islamic extremism honestly and directly. Australians expect their parliament to name the problem and tackle it properly, and I'm confident that we can do that today.”

Liberal Party of Australia • MP • 20 Jan 2026

“These changes strengthen the law. They close loopholes and they restore clarity and accountability. The Liberal Party will always strongly defend freedom of thought, freedom of worship and freedom of speech, because those freedoms define who we are as a nation and they must be defended, even when the task before us is confronting hatred and extremism. The Liberal Party will always act to keep Australians safe, defend our freedoms and put the national interest first—as we have in passing this bill. I look forward to the nation pausing tomorrow, on the day of remembrance, to reflect and to unite behind a shared determination to take the strong actions that we know we need to take as a nation to tackle radical Islamic extremism and to eradicate antisemitism. We must unite with determination, focus and overall action.”

Liberal Party of Australia • MP • 20 Jan 2026

“Back in, I think, 2008, I was out there saying that we need to target hate preachers. The reason for that is my background with Victoria Police. When I look at laws and legislation, I'm looking at how police can find a conviction. I've had concerns in the past. For example, going back to September 11, you had radical preachers out there talking about how the September 11 attacks were justified and saying that it's a good thing when infidels die. It's not actually going far enough to be incitement or threats. That's why this legislation here today is very important: to make sure we capture people who are trying to influence younger people to commit hideous attacks.”

Liberal Party of Australia • MP • 20 Jan 2026

“The Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism (Criminal and Migration Laws) Bill 2026 is the first of many steps the coalition is taking to make sure that the national tragedy at Bondi never happens again. Now, let's get the facts straight: the intent of this bill is to designate and disrupt extremist ideological organisations that are radicalising Australian people to commit terror on our land. It will increase border control by deporting or refusing visas to people posing extreme risk to our national security.”

Liberal Party of Australia • Senator • 20 Jan 2026

“In many respects, I can live with the haste of this. I did not come here with the intention of standing in the way of immediate action on the serious issues this bill is intending to address. But the reality is that the report of the inquiry into this bill was only tabled this morning. The consequence of haste as a legislator is the missed opportunity to carefully consider and improve this significant legislation. That leaves me with considerable risk concerns. It truly does. I recognise that acts of antisemitism have left the Australian Jewish community living in terrible fear. I've spoken with Jewish leaders, and I understand the urgency of the parliament acting. I take my responsibilities as a legislator very seriously. I do have genuine concerns, but I have heard the call for urgent action.”

Independent • MP • 20 Jan 2026