Anthony Albanese has sensationally backflipped as he announced a Royal Commission into antisemitism in Australia – as he shrugs criticism from the Jewish community and elects former High Court Judge Virginia Bell to lead the probe.
Announcing the inquiry at a press conference in Canberra on Thursday, the Prime Minister acknowledged weeks of criticism over his government’s delay.
‘While we’ve been focused on these immediate actions, we’ve also listened to calls for a Commonwealth Royal Commission,’ he said.
He said the probe will focus on four main areas, including ‘investigating the nature and prevalence of antisemitism’.
The inquiry will also examine how enforcement and border agencies respond to antisemitic behaviour, review the circumstances surrounding the Bondi Beach terror attack on 14 December, and deliver recommendations to strengthen social cohesion.
Albanese emphasised the investigation would be tightly managed, with a deadline of 14 December 2026.
‘This won’t be a drawn‑out process,’ he said, insisting the commission would not jeopardise any future criminal proceedings.
The prime minister argued the inquiry is essential for national unity: ‘An attack on Jewish Australians is an attack on all Australians.’
Anthony Albanese has faced growing scrutiny since the December 14 attack, with Jewish community leaders, families of Bondi victims, sporting figures, and high-profile legal, business and civic leaders all demanding a transparent and comprehensive inquiry
Ex-High Court Justice Virginia Bell (picture) will lead the Commonwealth Royal Commission
Albanese defended his decision not to immediately call a Royal Commission when pressed by reporters.
‘What we’ve done is listen and and we’ve concluded that where we have landed today is an appropriate way forward for national unity,’ he said.
He also took aim at the Opposition’s proposal, arguing their version would have failed to deliver urgent results.
‘I think if we had adopted the 73-point proposal that was put forward by the opposition, we would have been many years down the track before we received any practical outcomes,’ he said.
The inquiry will conduct an extensive review of law‑enforcement, border, immigration and federal security agencies, assessing how effectively they detect, share and act on threats linked to extremist ideology.
It will examine whether agencies had the right training, powers, and operational frameworks to identify antisemitic motivations and escalating risks in the lead‑up to the attack, which left 15 dead and many more injured.
Albanese also vowed continued action on hate speech, gun laws and extremism, saying the Royal Commission is designed to ‘strengthen’, not replace existing measures.
The investigation will run alongside the previously announced Richardson Review into security agencies.
Justice Bell (centre) previously led the investigation into Scott Morrison’s multiple-ministries scandal. She will lead the federal Royal Commission into antisemitism in Australia
But Albanese’s pick to lead the Royal Commission has already drawn backlash from sections of the Jewish community, including former Liberal treasurer Josh Frydenberg.
‘The Prime Minister has been told directly by leaders of the Jewish community that they have serious concerns about this appointment,’ he said on Wednesday.
‘This is a time for unity and national healing.’
Labor faced growing scrutiny since the December 14 attack, with Jewish community leaders, families of Bondi victims, sporting figures, and high-profile legal, business and civic leaders all demanding a transparent and comprehensive inquiry.
Reports that Justice Bell was under consideration triggered immediate concerns.
Critics pointed out that Justice Bell had previously presided over the Brown v Tasmania case, a landmark High Court ruling that struck down Tasmania’s anti-protest laws on constitutional grounds.
The reasoning from that decision was later used by the NSW Supreme Court to overturn the Minns government’s attempt to block a pro-Palestine march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge last year.
The protest made headlines when an image surfaced showing a demonstrator holding a photo of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, near the front of the rally and close to senior politicians.
‘After more than two years of unprecedented hate, harassment and violence directed towards the Jewish community, culminating in Australia’s deadliest terrorist attack at Bondi Beach, it is unthinkable the Prime Minister would choose a commissioner who did not have the total confidence of the Jewish community,’ Frydenberg said.
But Albanese defended Bell on Thursday, saying she was the most ‘qualified person we could consider’.
‘If you look at what is required by this royal commission, there is no one of the stature of Virginia Bell, a former High Court judge, a former head or senior person in the New South Wales Supreme Court, someone with a background in the criminal law, someone who is widely respected right across the board,’ he said.
Opposition frontbencher Jonno Duniam said that leaders of the Jewish community and victims’ families should be comfortable with whoever leads the probe.
‘Those leading the commission should be acceptable to the victims’ families and the community affected by the events in Bondi. That is the test,’ he told ABC Radio.
The Opposition has called for the inquiry to be led by a legal expert, a national security expert and a Jewish community leader.
In a statement, Sussan Ley said Albanese had ‘relented’ by agreeing to a commission.
‘If the Prime Minister had been as determined to eradicate antisemitism in Australia over the past three years as he has been to avoid this Commonwealth Royal Commission over the past three weeks, our country may not have found itself in the position we do today,’ she said.
Anthony Albanese (pictured) defended his decision to delay calling a Federal Royal Commission
‘The Prime Minister’s decision to finally establish a Commonwealth Royal Commission is not an act of leadership, it is an admission that his litany of excuses have collapsed.
‘For weeks now, Australians watched a Prime Minister fumble and flounder while answers for victims’ families were put on hold.
‘Anthony Albanese relented, not because he believed a Commonwealth Royal Commission was the right thing to do, but because he was forced to do so by the Australian people.’
However, Ben Saul, a widely respected international law expert and the United Nations’ special rapporteur on human rights, said Ms Bell is highly regarded.
‘It is time to stop politicising any Bondi inquiry,’ Professor Saul said.
Justice Bell previously led the investigation into Scott Morrison’s multiple-ministries scandal and served as a High Court judge from 2009 to 2021, following nearly a decade on the NSW Supreme Court.
