Anthony Albanese is being urged to “yield” to growing calls for a royal commission into anti-Semitism following the Bondi massacre, as a group of former Labor politicians join the push.
More than 20 people connected to the party have written to the prime minister in an open letter, saying only a Commonwealth inquiry could unpack the “broader ecosystem of terror and hate and the capacity of the agencies to monitor terrorist threats”.
Australian-born Naveed Akram, and his father Sajid Akram – who was killed at the scene – opened fire on a Jewish Hanukkah celebration at Bondi on December 14.
The terror attack left 15 people dead and more than 40 injured.
The signatories include members from the Labor Israel Action Committee, as well as Olympic champion Nova Peris, who was a Labor senator.
“At stake is the health of our democracy and our national security,” the letter reads.
“Australians who are Jewish were the main target of this attack but all Australians are made less safe by the extremism that has inexorably escalated into lethal actions.”
The bid places further pressure on Mr Albanese who has repeatedly rejected calls for a federal royal commission, arguing the need for an urgent response instead of a lengthy process.
The federal government is expected to recall the parliament early before Australia Day to strengthen hate speech laws and introduce measures aimed at tackling hatred.
A date for parliament’s early return has been the topic of much discussion in Canberra corridors but, as of Tuesday morning, is yet to be confirmed.
Federal MPs and senators are currently slated to return to Parliament House on February 3.
While Mr Albanese has deferred calls for the royal commission, he has green-lit an independent inquiry into Australia’s intelligence and law enforcement agencies, which will be completed by the end of April.
Opposition Leader Sussan Ley said the parliament should have returned before Christmas to respond to the terror attack.
“The prime minister does need to yield to the calls now,” she told Nine’s Today program on Tuesday.
“Earlier on, he called for unity. He now has unity across this country. Every day, more and more decent Australians are stepping up.”
Alongside many Jewish leaders, a business collective and a clutch of sporting stars have also penned open letters calling for a royal commission.
Health Minister Mark Butler said while he respected those calls as “sincere and heartfelt”, he pointed to a planned NSW state royal commission to tackle many of those issues.
“These calls are something that we respect and of course, listen to but but our work right now is on those urgent and immediate things,” he told ABC News Breakfast.
“We’ve got a lot of urgent and immediate work that has been focusing our energy over the last few weeks.”
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