PM ‘thumbed his nose’ at Bondi victims’ families with royal commission refusal, Ley says

Anthony Albanese has “thumbed his nose” at the families of those killed and wounded in the Bondi Beach terror attack by refusing to call a royal commission, Sussan Ley says.

The Prime Minister has resisted widespread calls – including from victims’ families – for a Commonwealth royal commission into the massacre, which targeted a Jewish Hanukkah festival and left 15 innocents dead.

Instead, he has committed to a departmental review into intelligence and law enforcement agencies and backed NSW to carry out a state-level royal commission.

Speaking to media shortly after Mr Albanese released terms of reference for the review, the Opposition Leader said it made no sense for Mr Albanese to ignore the growing pleas for a royal commission.

“The families of victims want this Commonwealth royal commission,” Ms Ley told reporters at Parliament House.

“The Jewish community wants it and … I suspect millions of ordinary Australians want it as well.

“The former governors-general want it. Judges, the former AFP commissioner, senior lawyers and the security experts want it.

“The Coalition wants it. Even Labor MPs want it.

“Today the Prime Minister thumbed his nose at these families and told them, in effect, that he knows better.”

She said she had “stood with and listened to Australia’s Jewish community” in the wake of the attack.

“When you hear their stories and understand the depth of their grief and their pain, it is unimaginable,” Ms Ley said.

“We also hear their anger.”

She accused Mr Albanese of “hiding behind the process”, suggesting he was worried of what might be uncovered by a royal commission.

“Australians have now read deeply disturbing attack accounts of repeated warnings that were ignored of anti-Semitism allowed to grow unchecked and of leadership that failed when it mattered the most,” she said.

“Families of victims feel shut out, unheard and disrespected.

“Members of the community believe that this attack was not inevitable but preventable.

“Yet instead of listening to those most affected, the Prime Minister has decided to speak over them.

“Instead of the truth he is hiding behind the process.”

She added that Mr Albanese “speaking over victims and their families and declaring that his pathway forward is the right one” had “insulted those who have endured the unimaginable”.

Senior opposition senator James Paterson has also accused Labor of fearing what a royal commission would expose.

“The only thing stopping the Albanese government calling a royal commission into our worst ever terror attack is their fear about what it would reveal about their own failings and inaction in the face of Australia’s anti-Semitism crisis,” he posted on social media.

PM reveals terms of reference

The probe Mr Albanese has announced, led by respected former public servant and intelligence chief Dennis Richardson, was ordered amid revelations one of the Bondi suspects had been looked into by intelligence services but fell off their radar despite frequenting an Islamic centre notorious for extremist preachings.

Emerging from a National Security Committee meeting, Mr Albanese said Australia needed to “respond with unity and urgency rather than division and delay” to the attack.

“Mr Richardson will assess whether Commonwealth agencies performed to maximum effectiveness,” he told a press conference.

Australia’s intelligence and policing services have come under intense scrutiny since the deadly shootings.

Many have questioned why there were not more police on site and how the suspects, Naveed and Sajid Akram, stayed below the radar of counter-terrorism watchers.

Sajid Akram, who was killed in the police response, had amassed six firearms since acquiring his gun licence in 2023.

His son, Naveed, has been charged with 59 offences, including committing a terrorist act.

The review will cover what agencies knew about the alleged offenders, information sharing, and whether there were “additional measures” Commonwealth agencies could have taken to prevent the attack.

Other areas to be canvassed include whether Commonwealth agencies were prevented from taking prohibitive actions, what measures should be taken to prevent similar attacks in the future and if the law needs to be changed.

Mr Albanese said the report would be ready by April, feeding into his argument that a royal commission would take years and that urgent action was needed.

“The government is committed to making sure that we can’t wait years for answers, we need to get on with any changes this are required,” he said.

“Mr Richardson will engage with NSW agencies and to the extent necessary agencies in other states and territories.”

He went on to say the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet “has established a secretary for the review and he is providing logistics support as required and the review is under way”.

“Mr Richardson will be full access to all material he considers maybe relevant to his inquiry,” he said.

“Departments and agencies will co-operate fully with the review and provide assistance in the form of documents, data, material and meetings.”

The release of the terms of reference came after the families of Bondi victims penned a letter demanding Mr Albanese order a royal commission.