Julian Leeser tells royal commission his son no longer feels safe at Jewish events
Caitlin Cassidy
Back to the antisemitism royal commission, where the Liberal MP Julian Leeser has been giving evidence.
Leeser has recalled his own experience on 14 December, the day of the terror attack in Bondi.
He was attending an outdoor Hanukkah event in northern Sydney at the time.
Holding back tears, he says he remembers his son’s fear when the news broke.
Leeser had made a speech at the event saying he “recognised that it had been a tough year for the Jewish community, but hoped that things would be better”, when a rabbi pulled him aside and said 50 shots had been fired at Bondi.
He told the rabbi they should get down as quickly as possible, because they didn’t know if what had happened at Bondi was more coordinated, and that:
When I came down , it was apparent that people had been killed in the events at Bondi … By that time there were lots of adults who were sharing pictures … And they’re in disbelief.
My son at that time was seven and my daughter was three. And my son had overheard the adults talking about the fact that people had been shot and killed in Bondi. And he cried inconsolably … He sat with his legs crossed saying, ‘Dad, are we going to be safe?’.
This has affected him deeply.
Leeser said he couldn’t guarantee to his son that they would be safe. Since then, he has been afraid to attend synagogues and outdoor communal events.
What sort of Australia are we setting up that a seven-year-old child doesn’t feel safe going to a place of worship?
That’s not the Australia I know and love and it’s not the Australia I want for my children or anyone’s children.
Key events
Caitlin Cassidy
Julian Leeser calls for audit on university courses that teach about Israel and Palestine
Julian Leeser, who is the shadow minister for education, has told the royal commission that universities should undertake an audit of classes which teach about Israel and Palestine.
Leeser says he has been “very concerned” about university antisemitism since before 2023 and that”
I’ve been particularly unhappy with the responses that I’ve received [from vice chancellors] in relation to their failure to … properly audit courses to see what is being taught about Jews and Israel, and their failure in particular to audit courses dealing with the Israel-Palestine conflict to ensure that both sides are presented in the best way possible so that students are best prepared to make their own mind up.
Among the recommendations he put to the commission was for the government to legislate that all universities adopt the IHRA definition of antisemitism, instead of choosing their own definition as is currently required. The IHRA definition is contentious because of concerns it could be used to shut down criticism of the state of Israel.
Leeser also said all universities should undertake “an audit of what’s being taught about Jews and Israel in their classrooms” and “remove antisemitic materials if they’re present”.
He said universities that taught about the Israel-Palestine conflict should make sure their course materials came from “credible sources” of “both sides” and that it was “balanced”.
Asked how to ensure classroom content was “balanced”, he said:
You will see people say, oh, we’ve got balance here. Because we’ve got one perspective from, say, the Palestinian side and one perspective from the Israeli side.
But one of those perspectives is a full-throated defence by advocates of their position. And the other perspective is not at all.
Julian Leeser tells royal commission his son no longer feels safe at Jewish events
Caitlin Cassidy
Back to the antisemitism royal commission, where the Liberal MP Julian Leeser has been giving evidence.
Leeser has recalled his own experience on 14 December, the day of the terror attack in Bondi.
He was attending an outdoor Hanukkah event in northern Sydney at the time.
Holding back tears, he says he remembers his son’s fear when the news broke.
Leeser had made a speech at the event saying he “recognised that it had been a tough year for the Jewish community, but hoped that things would be better”, when a rabbi pulled him aside and said 50 shots had been fired at Bondi.
He told the rabbi they should get down as quickly as possible, because they didn’t know if what had happened at Bondi was more coordinated, and that:
When I came down , it was apparent that people had been killed in the events at Bondi … By that time there were lots of adults who were sharing pictures … And they’re in disbelief.
My son at that time was seven and my daughter was three. And my son had overheard the adults talking about the fact that people had been shot and killed in Bondi. And he cried inconsolably … He sat with his legs crossed saying, ‘Dad, are we going to be safe?’.
This has affected him deeply.
Leeser said he couldn’t guarantee to his son that they would be safe. Since then, he has been afraid to attend synagogues and outdoor communal events.
What sort of Australia are we setting up that a seven-year-old child doesn’t feel safe going to a place of worship?
That’s not the Australia I know and love and it’s not the Australia I want for my children or anyone’s children.
Socceroos star Cristian Volpato allegedly tests positive for cocaine
Socceroos star Cristian Volpato has allegedly tested positive for cocaine, after police stopped him speeding over a harbour bridge, AAP reports.
The 22-year-old, who represented Australia at the World Cup earlier in July, was caught speeding twice overnight, NSW police said on Friday.
Driving a BMW, Volpato was allegedly clocked at 109 km/h – nearly 50 km/h over the designated speed limit – when police stopped him on Sydney’s Anzac Bridge at 1.10am on Friday.
He was subjected to a roadside drug test which allegedly returned a positive result for cocaine, police said in a statement on Friday.
A secondary sample of oral fluid was taken for further analysis.
His international driver’s licence was suspended for six months.
AAP has contacted Football Australia for comment.
Caitlin Cassidy
Jewish Australians threatened by ‘academic and cultural left’, Julian Leeser says
Julian Leeser has told the royal commission that Jewish people are most threatened by “neo-Nazis”, “radical Islamists” and the “academic and cultural left”.
Leeser says he has witnessed an increase in antisemitism in recent years, including personally as a federal member of parliament, recalling his posters being graffitied with Hitler moustaches, swastikas and dollar signs.
He said:
As a member of parliament, you’re regularly criticised for what you do … People can say, I don’t like your party, or I don’t like the way you represent our community.
There’s nothing wrong with any of those things … But what I found quite a lot as a member of parliament is that I am not subject to that sort of criticism, but I’m subject to an antisemitic criticism of what I do.
Leeser says antisemitism has evolved over time, but is currently most damaging amongst “neo-Nazis”, “radical Islamists” and the “academic and cultural left”.
He said:
In the Middle Ages, Jews were hated for their religion. In the 19th and 20th century, they were hated for their race. Today, they’re hated for their nation state.
We find anti-Semitism in three main vectors in Australian society. In the far right among neo-Nazis, among radical Islamists, and among the academic and cultural left.
And I’m subjected to anti-Semitism as many Jewish Australians are on through all those vectors and in particular in relation to conflating Jewish Australians as being responsible for the actions of the government of Israel.
Caitlin Cassidy
Julian Leeser tells royal commission he ‘worries about the future’ of the Jewish community
Liberal MP Julian Leeser has told the royal commission into antisemitism and social cohesion that “one of the wonderful things” about Australia is the Jewish community have been here since the First Fleet and “flourished in every imaginable aspect of Australian life” – but their position has “declined”.
He said:
My particular sense of what it means to be an Australian Jew is that this country is such an amazing place … and that’s the thing I’m most sad about in the last few years, that I feel the position of Jewish Australians has really declined … and I worry about the future of the Jewish community and my family in this country.
Leeser is appearing at the fifth round of hearings this week, which is examining the relationship between police and Jewish security groups after calls for governments to entirely fund the community’s security needs.
The member for Berowra – the first Jewish person to represent the Liberal party in the federal house of representatives – persistently lobbied for the commission in the wake of the Bondi terror attack.
He was previously a chair of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies and a councillor of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry.
Catie McLeod
Hi, I hope you’re having a nice day. I’ll be with you on the blog for the next little while.
That’s it from me today. Handing over to Catie McLeod to take you through the afternoon.
Gina Rinehart offers bonuses for Australian swimming medals as funding gap exposed
Freestyle king Kyle Chalmers has welcomed potential windfalls for Australia’s Commonwealth Games swimmers after Gina Rinehart offered up cash bonuses for medals and world records.
Amid a spate of high-profile athlete withdrawals from Glasgow 2026, Dolphins squad members have been given a significant incentive to take part. Billionaire Rinehart has confirmed she will deliver the same bonuses that were on offer in the pool at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Individual swimmers will pocket $20,000 for a gold medal, $15,000 for silver and $10,000 for bronze and $30,000 for a world record. Relay team members will also be rewarded with $7,500 per person for a world record, $5,000 for a gold medal, $3,750 for silver and $2,500 for bronze.
The swimming bonanza comes as many athletes in other sports lament a lack of financial support, despite Commonwealth Games Australia (CGA) providing a $5,000 grant to every member of the Glasgow team.
Chalmers said:
I’m super grateful to have the support of CGA to get us here, but to be able to have some medal incentive, it gives us a lot more purpose and reason.
Otherwise you get a medal and the uniform … so [I’m] very grateful to have supporters.
Read more:
Spike in kids’ crisis calls spotlights health challenge
More than a third of young Australians (36%) met criteria for anxiety, mood or substance disorders, up from 23 per cent in 2007, according to a report led by Sydney University researchers.
AAP reports those in the 16-24 age cohort suffering severe disorders rose from 14.7% to 24%, according to the study examining national survey data to 2022.
Co-lead author Tim Slade, a professor from the Sydney University’s Matilda Centre for Mental Health and Substance Use, said the problems facing young people go beyond simply feeling more stressed.
We are seeing higher rates of severe mental disorders that can profoundly disrupt daily functioning, and have lasting consequences for wellbeing the professor from the university’s Matilda Centre for Mental Health and Substance Use.
A mental health condition can often begin in a person’s early years and, without the right support and treatment, become entrenched throughout their life.
The report meshed with data from Kids Helpline, run by the charity Yourtown, which showed a dramatic spike in calls.
The free service has fielded 2965 crisis calls from those at risk so far in 2026, up 26 per cent on the same period in 2025.
Stephanie Convery
Man previously accused of killing Melbourne teen loses bid to have final charge dropped
The man previously charged with killing 19-year-old Melbourne woman Isla Bell has failed in his attempt to have the final charge against him relating to her death thrown out.
Marat Ganiev, 55, was initially charged with the murder of Bell, 19, after her remains were found in a bag in a Dandenong rubbish tip on 20 November 2024, about six weeks after the night police believe she died.
Ganiev was charged with murdering Bell on 7 October 2024. Police alleged he killed the young woman at his St Kilda property and put her body in a fridge, which was then wrapped in plastic and tape, removed by a second man, and driven around Melbourne for days before being dumped.
He later had his charge downgraded to manslaughter and it was then withdrawn entirely in May, a week before his scheduled trial, with prosecutors saying they had insufficient evidence. Ganiev was then charged with attempting to pervert the course of justice.
Ganiev applied to the supreme court on 14 July for a permanent stay on his case, with his barrister arguing that the prosecution’s decision to file a new indictment a week before the trial was an abuse of process.
Justice James Elliott on Friday disagreed, finding the prosecutors were within their right to file a fresh indictment.
Read the full story here.
Entire Queensland police pistol arsenal to be replaced by new guns
Andrew Messenger
The entire Queensland police pistol arsenal – more than 14,000 weapons – will be replaced by new guns.
The arsenal, made up of Austrian-made .40 calibre Glock pistols, has just gone through a recall, after a flaw was discovered in a weapon earlier this year.
About 1% of weapons had a fault making them effectively fully automatic, firing constantly while the trigger was pulled.
Police minister Dan Purdie used parliamentary estimates to announce the government would replace the old weapons – some of them dating to 1998 – with new 9mm Glock 45 Generation 6 service pistols. The weapon was introduced earlier this year.
More than 14,000 new service pistols will replace aging firearms, first issued almost three decades ago.
Queensland will become the first policing jurisdiction in Australia to upgrade its entire handgun fleet to the latest Generation Six platform.
Every frontline officer will have a modern, reliable equipment designed to give them greater confidence when responding to the most dangerous situations imaginable.
The replacement will cost $14m, with new weapons arriving from the end of this year.
Josh Taylor
Microsoft Teams outage resolved
Earlier we reported there was an outage for Microsoft’s meetings platform Teams, affecting users in the Asia Pacific region.
The company now reports the issue is resolved.
Andrew Messenger
Queensland police integrity working group met just twice this year, parliamentary estimates hears
The committee responsible for setting up Queensland’s police integrity unit met just twice this year, parliamentary estimates has heard – and the substance of both meetings will remain secret.
The unit is years late.
The landmark A Call for Change inquiry into domestic violence recommended in November 2022 that an independent organisation to investigate all complaints against police be set up “within 18 months” in order to end what it found was a “culture of impunity” caused by the practice of having police investigate police.
Queensland’s Crime and Corruption Commission chair, Bruce Barbour, criticised the then-Labor government for delays on the project in 2024. A working group had been set up but there’d been little more progress, he said at the time.
On Friday Barbour told estimates that the commission had had two conversations with government about the “potential” police integrity unit in 2026, both in April.
Those discussions were categorised as cabinet in confidence, and so I’m not in a position to say anything further in relation to that.
Barbour told the committee the commission hadn’t received any additional funding for anything associated with a potential police integrity unit”, nor any additional funding for police oversight. He said commission’s current funding covers the responsibility.
The CCC investigates fewer than 1% of complaints made to it about police, with many complaints referred back to the police or other government departments.
Only one person was charged with a corruption offence last year.
Barnaby Joyce’s wife Vikki Campion bans 7.30 from farm after dog incident
Vikki Campion, a journalist and the wife of the One Nation MP Barnaby Joyce, says ABC’s 7.30 is banned from their property after a clip from the show went viral.
In the video, Joyce had yelled at a dog to “sit down!” while he was doing an interview from the New England farm.
Since then, the MP and his wife have been peppered with questions, prompting Campion to take to her Substack to defend Joyce and her working dog Stella.
Stella was barking because she was protecting her family, like the boys that I was trying to put to bed, from a vehicle that she saw as suspicious. I’m not going to question her judgment on that.
She then banished 7.30 from their farm.
For years, I have personally set up cameras, lights and internet connectivity to assist Sydney media to interview Barnaby, often without ever so much as a thank you.
Never again.
ABC 7.30 is banned from my property.
If Barnaby wants to do it, he can do it in Sydney or Canberra, in a studio where lights and microphones and cameras are done for him, just as they are for Ferguson, where he is at least on equal footing to a host who thinks she knows more about our farm than we do.
Guardian Australia has sought comment from ABC.
Krishani Dhanji
Labor secretary Paul Erickson cuts debate time as conference runs overtime
Debate time has been cut down from three minutes to one minute for delegates, as the conference starts going overtime.
Paul Erickson, the national secretary, has moved to speed up the debate, just for the current chapter that deals with health and the NDIS to try and get back to schedule.
The conference was already running overtime this morning, spending half an hour on amendments to the environment portfolio which got cut off yesterday afternoon.
At the opening of the morning’s session, the ALP vice-president Mich-Elle Myers said the consequences of going over yesterday meant she was stuck still chairing the session after having had “too good a time with my comrades last night”.
(Last night the left and tight factions were out having their factional dinners – the right’s was at the SkyCity casino, while we’re told the left had theirs in a warehouse space).
Caitlin Cassidy
Jewish community allocated $209m from home affairs for security since 7 October 2023, royal commission hears
The Jewish community has been allocated more than $200m since the 7 October Hamas terror attack in 2023 towards security measures, the royal commission into antisemitism and social cohesion has heard.
Appearing on Friday, Amy Dyde, assistant secretary in the Department of Home Affairs, said Jewish communities had experienced an increased risk environment since the attack where community centres and places of worship were increasingly targeted by antisemitic attacks.
She said five protective security grants had been delivered by Home Affairs from 2023 to 2029, totalling at just over $209m. The funding was provided to the Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ). Asked why that was an appropriate way to allocate the grants, Dyde said:
In October 2023, there was an urgent need to roll out immediate funding to the community, noting the increased security risks. Commonwealth grants can typically take … many months to develop. And it was determined that utilising the ECAJ to administer that funding would, one, be more expeditious for the community, but two, more importantly, the ECAJ have a very important role in sitting across the Jewish community … It’s also important to give the Jewish community autonomy over where that funding is utilised within the community.
Krishani Dhanji
Delegates support voluntary assisted dying amendment
The conference is currently debating the ability to access voluntary assisted dying via telehealth – and it’s a genuine debate today.
Caitlin Tough, an ACT representative, says voluntary assisted dying is healthcare and says the current laws stop a person accessing VAD being able to have a support person on the phone or video call with them while they meet with a health professional to talk about their options.
She tells the floor:
A doctor may lawfully have a conversation across a desk, but they face criminal risk for the same communication by telephone or video.
The problem is that two Commonwealth criminal code provisions, written well before telehealth became routine, before anyone had voluntary assistant dying as we know it now, stops this from happening, and the burden is falling heavily on people who are extremely ill, who cannot readily leave their home or live a long distance from an authorized practitioner or their family does to support them.
A critic of the policy spoke said, “I think we all agree this is complex, nuanced, and shouldn’t be done over a Zoom call.”
While there were a fair few “no’s” in the room, voting against the amendment, the amendment was passed without a division.
