The permanent unit will feature around 250 dedicated officers, 28 civilian staff, and a fleet of rapid-response vehicles, allowing police to maintain a visible and proactive presence without being rotated out of existing commands.

Opening her address at Senate Estimates on Wednesday evening, Commissioner Barrett said it was the AFP’s first appearance since the Bondi Beach terrorist attack on 14 December 2025, which remains the subject of an active criminal investigation and a Royal Commission.

"The message of hope, of resilience, and of the need to keep sending the glow of those candles out into the world."

Albanese linked the reforms directly to the Bondi attack, saying “terrorists had hate in their hearts, but they had guns in their hands”, arguing the government had acted with “urgency and unity” to address both.

Bob Katter MP argued Australia should only accept migrants from societies that uphold the rule of law, democratic governance, religious freedom, egalitarian values and strong work ethics.

“The Opposition are so obsessed with opposing things, they’ve now begun to oppose themselves.”

The legislation, which aims to create new federal offences for promoting racial hatred, increase penalties for hate crimes, and target radicalising preachers, has sparked backlash from multiple quarters, including the Coalition, One Nation, and Jewish and Muslim community groups.

There is a lot of information and misinformation swirling around. Kids need to feel like they can trust what parents are saying to them.

The Australian Federal Police established Operation Avalite a year ago to investigate rising antisemitism and related threats.

One thing some people have latched onto is the idea Google Trends data show a spike in searches for “Naveed Akram” – the name of one of the attackers – from Tel Aviv (or other locations) before the shooting occurred.