The opposition's most senior Jewish MP has delivered a scathing condemnation of the prime minister's handling of anti-Semitism as pressure grows on Labor to call a royal commission into the Bondi terror attack.
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Coalition education spokesman Julian Leeser was visibly angry as he denounced Anthony Albanese, demanding he launch a federal inquiry into the apparently Islamic State-inspired shooting at a Hanukkah celebration that killed 15 people.
"The Jewish community of this country cannot survive on the crumbs of this government and this appalling prime minister who is always late to the party and who wants the Jewish community of this country to live in his half measures," he said on Monday, slamming the lectern with his palm as he spoke.
But the Albanese government has continued to stare down calls to hold a royal commission into the mass shooting, the deadliest terror attack ever carried out on Australia's shores.
It has instead backed a NSW-led inquiry and launched a more limited review of its own, led by former intelligence chief Dennis Richardson, into federal intelligence and law enforcement agencies.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the government's focus was on keeping Australians safe and the intelligence review would provide assurance faster than a broader royal commission.
But Mr Leeser was not satisfied, demanding Mr Albanese recall parliament immediately.
"I don't want to see the memories of the 15 Australians who died last Sunday, I don't want to see their memories being desecrated by this half-measure departmental review that is proposed by this prime minister," he said.
"We need nothing short of a royal commission now.
"Australia stands humiliated by the failure of leadership of this man, by the failure of leadership which has led to the extraordinary deaths in a terrorist act on the shores of Bondi, in this great city of ours."
In a move to ramp up pressure on the government, the coalition on Monday released its own terms of reference for a royal commission.
The opposition's proposed inquiry would deliver an interim report by June 2026 and look at how commonwealth and state governments, as well as the media, education and cultural sectors, have allowed anti-Semitism to fester and contributed to the terrorist attack.
Its proposed terms of reference include examining how attitudes towards the state of Israel have fuelled anti-Jewish sentiment.
Pro-Palestinian activists have frequently sought to separate their criticism of Israel for its offensive in Gaza from any anti-Semitic activity targeting Jews.
Independent MP Allegra Spender, whose electorate of Wentworth takes in Bondi Beach, said the intelligence review, led by the prime minister's department, essentially amounted to the government investigating itself.
"We need a federal and state collective royal commission or that sort of inquiry to get to the heart of what happened last week and what we can learn from it," Ms Spender said.
Federal Labor has also been under fire from parts of the Jewish community for its perceived failure to address a rise in anti-Semitism following Hamas's October 7, 2023 attacks in Israel.
The prime minister's approval rating has plunged since the Bondi massacre, although Opposition Leader Sussan Ley's standing has also fallen after her pointed criticism of the government, according to a Resolve survey published on Monday.
Mr Albanese was booed multiple times as he attended a Bondi Beach vigil for the victims of the attack on Sunday evening.
The same crowd applauded David Ossip, president of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies, when he called for a royal commission.
Australian Associated Press
