Subjects: Listing of neo-Nazi groups under Australia’s counter-terrorism laws; Newspoll; International Holocaust Remembrance Day 80th Anniversary Service; anti-Semitism; the Coalition’s commitment of $2 million to the Holocaust Institute of WA.
E&OE.
QUESTION:
Are you concerned about the rise of white supremacists in Australia?
PETER DUTTON:
Yes, absolutely. It’s a disgrace, an abomination, and anybody who’s spewing hatred, whether it’s the Greens or the white supremacists, or the neo-Nazis, they have no place in our society at all.
We’re a tolerant community, and I think I demonstrated as Home Affairs Minister that we have zero tolerance for the activities of any of these extremist groups.
QUESTION:
Do you believe it’s on the rise?
PETER DUTTON:
It’s clearly on the rise. When you speak to Holocaust survivors who have been here living peacefully, having created a life for themselves since the end of the Second World War, and they’re now saying that they feel unsafe in our country. That demonstrates to all Australians that we have a serious problem that needs to be fixed, and we’re absolutely dedicated to fixing it.
As we’ve said right from the time of the attack on October 7, we have zero tolerance for anti-Semitism and racism and hatred. We’ve demonstrated that not just with words, but with actions. We want to have in place a regime of minimum mandatory sentencing for acts of anti-Semitism, and that should be a very clear message to others who are thinking about partaking in these acts of hatred – they should think twice about it.
QUESTION:
And you woke up to a good Newspoll this morning?
PETER DUTTON:
Well, there’s a lot of polls between now and the election. I think the momentum is there for change in our country because people are hurting. I desperately want to see an interest rate reduction, and I hope that that comes sooner than later because families can’t afford their grocery bills under this Government. The Government’s created a cost of living crisis, they’ve created a housing crisis and they’ve created a safety crisis in our country as well, where many Australians feel unsafe – certainly less safe than they did just a few years ago when Mr Albanese was elected.
QUESTION:
You’re here at the same time as the PM. Is this a show of bipartisanship?
PETER DUTTON:
Yes, I hope that it is. I welcome the Prime Minister’s attendance here today and I hope the Jewish community knows that 99 per cent of Australians support them. The hatred that is expressed online, the doxxing, the vile, vile views that we hear from some on university campuses – it just has no place in our society whatsoever.
I hope that every Australian child, every school child, has the opportunity and as I’ve announced before, we will mandate a requirement as part of our funding agreement with the schools for Australian school children to attend a Holocaust museum so that the education can take place and so that our country can be an exemplar of standing up against anti-Semitism.
Alright? Thank you very much. Thank you.
[ends]