The Federal Government will face a major blow when parliament resumes on Monday, with the Greens planning to oppose Labor’s Bondi Bill to combat antisemitism, hate and extremism.
Greens leader Larissa Waters said on Saturday they were ready to support the government’s changes to gun laws, but the rest of the omnibus bill needed to include all religious groups including Islam.
Ms Waters said legal experts, faith groups and communities raised more concerns every hour and they would not support laws that risked criminalising legitimate political expression.
“The risk of unintended consequences is too great to rush passage of this legislation,” she said.
“The Greens are willing to work with Labor to find a way forward on laws to combat hate in our communities.
“But the negotiations and legal analysis required to produce a good outcome on this omnibus bill can’t be done in the extremely tight time frame the government has created.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese ordered parliamentarians back early to pass the Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism Bill 2026 in the wake of the Bondi terror attack.
The omnibus Bill proposes changes to speech, security, migration and gun laws, and underpins the federal government’s response to the Bondi attack.
But Mr Albanese needs support form either the Greens or Coalition to pass the legislation through the Senate. Both have rejected swathes of the Bill.
The Australian reported Labor’s final option was for an intelligence committee to recommend changes that would satisfy the Coalition.
Mr Albanese told media on Friday that it was “a moment for national unity” and that people should be coming forward in good faith with suggestions.
“People have dismissed this legislation that they call for without even reading it, and have made comments that are just not right,” Mr Albanese said.
He urged the parliament come together for a “unanimous decision” and called on “all members and senators to engage constructively”.
Greens senators Mehreen Faruqi and David Shoebridge fronted media in Sydney on Saturday with the deputy leader calling the draft laws “dangerous.”
“This is a dangerous piece of legislation that cannot be fixed,” Ms Faruqi said.
“The Greens share the concerns of many members of the community across the spectrum, who have come forward with serious concerns about this legislation.”
Earlier, Sussan Ley declared the legislation “unsalvageable” in a press conference all-but refusing to pass it.
“Laws of this seriousness demand precision, confidence and clarity,” she said, adding that the government had instead offered “confusion and contradiction”.
“Now, the opposition will continue to scrutinise this legislation carefully but from what we have seen so far, it looks pretty unsalvageable.
“As it stands, the government’s proposal is half-baked and Australians deserve far better.”
The Opposition Leader said the Coalition would seek to “advance our comprehensive and practical package of measures” next week as a counter.
“Under our package, our message to those who preach hatred, who preach radical Islamic extremist hatred, glorify terrorism or incite violence, it’s very clear – if you’re not an Australian citizen, you will be deported and if you are an Australian citizen, you will be arrested,” Ms Ley said.
“That is what we will be seeking to achieve when the parliament returns.
“The parliament has to eradicate anti-Semitism and remove radical Islam. Those are our tests.”
https://thewest.com.au/lifestyle/dangerous-australian-greens-to-oppose-federal-governments-bondi-bill-over-hate-speech-laws-c-21335788
