Anthony Albanese convenes national cabinet on antisemitism after Sydney childcare centre set alight
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Prime minister, who has previously resisted calling the meeting, says it will focus on recent wave of attacks and graffiti. National cabinet will meet on Tuesday afternoon to discuss antisemitism in Australia, after Anthony Albanese pledged that the latest attack on a Sydney childcare centre “will lead to action”.
The prime minister previously resisted calls for such a meeting, saying on Monday Australians did not just want to see more meetings on antisemitism. The Coalition opposition had been demanding Albanese call together state and territory leaders to discuss the issue and the government’s handpicked envoy on antisemitism, Jillian Segal, last week called for national cabinet to address a spate of recent crimes.
But hours after an antisemitic slogan was graffitied on a childcare centre in the Sydney suburb of Maroubra, which was also set alight, the prime minister confirmed such a meeting would take place. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email.
“This afternoon we will hear from the AFP commissioner and it will be an opportunity for us to discuss collectively the responses that are being made by state and territory governments and the coordination with the commonwealth,” Albanese told a press conference in western Sydney.
Albanese said the meeting agenda was still to be finalised, but it is expected the meeting will focus on antisemitism and the recent wave of attacks and graffiti. The New South Wales premier, Chris Minns, said his government would put more resources into policing and investigating such crimes and held open the potential to strengthen the state’s laws on hate speech and vilification.
