We should not sleepwalk into an attack on freedom of expression

8 hours ago 2

Editorial

January 16, 2026 — 5.00am

One of the aims of terrorism is to break civic norms such as free speech. But the Albanese government’s well-intentioned Combating Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism Bill is so vague and rushed that we risk sleepwalking into an unwanted new reality.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese calls a royal commission into antisemitism.

Politicians dithered while antisemitism mounted after the October 2023 Hamas terrorist attack and Israel’s counteroffensive, with synagogues and private property attacked across Australia. Then, after the December 14 Bondi Beach massacre, there was a massive and widespread demand for concerted action.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese quickly announced a slew of legal changes, but his need for speed on hate laws is outweighing the prudence of hastening slowly.

Albanese’s rush sits uncomfortably beside comments eight days ago justifying his change of mind when a public backlash prompted him to bow to the inevitable and announce a royal commission: “I take the time to choose the right path, the course of action that will make a positive difference to our country.”

Nobody wants hate speech, but Professor Emerita in Constitutional Law at the University of Sydney Anne Twomey wrote in the Herald, this new bill is highly problematic, especially the provisions that lower the threshold of race hate from “incite” to “promote” and has the potential to sweep political opinion and commentary on world events into the new law’s gaping maw.

It would be a recipe for disaster: the obvious example of how it could go wrong is the UK, where tens of thousands of arrests have been made over social media posts and public protests and hundreds have gone to court, clogging the legal system.

Twomey also reminded us that Australians do not have a constitutional right to free speech, which makes it even more imperative that we tread carefully. The other issue is that if the legislation is not tight, it will end up in a flood of high court appeals.

Twomey also noted that two international treaties and the Racial Discrimination Act already addressed racial hatred and freedom of speech, and the new criminal provision would be far more difficult to defend.

The federal parliament will begin a two-day session next Monday to consider the Albanese government’s proposed legislation. But by conflating hate speech with gun control and giving MPs hardly a week to consider the draft, the issue has swerved from the original aim of learning from Bondi Beach and avoiding becoming overly political.

The Coalition did little to deter such a turn of events. Before Christmas, Opposition Leader Sussan Ley called for immediate action. Now, wedged by an internal schism on the guns issue – the bill will limit ownership and establishes a gun buyback scheme – she says she cannot support the legislation, citing concerns over freedom of speech and the unworkability of the new laws.

Adding to the imbroglio, the Greens will reportedly seek amendments to protect the pro-Palestine movement’s freedom of expression and protest rights.

Clearly, the legislation is urgently needed.

The bill contains many flaws, but MPs should put aside differences and find the legislative path to better protect citizens, even if it takes more time.

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