Albanese’s hypocritical two-tier rush undermines our democracy

The Bondi massacre will define Mr Albanese’s prime ministership.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has long positioned himself as a champion of due process, transparency, and democratic norms. Kindness is not weakness, he tells us. Yet his government’s frantic push to ram through omnibus legislation aimed at curbing civil rights and liberties reveals a stark hypocrisy that threatens the very foundations of Australian democracy.

As scholars of politics and international law, we call for the government to withdraw this omnibus bill, subject it to genuine parliamentary inquiry, and consult widely, including with those it claims to protect. Australia’s democratic legacy deserves better than a rushed power grab. Albanese must decide whether he will live up to the principles he demands of others or continue down a path that diminishes our nation’s standing as a free and fair society.

My latest in The Spectator Australia with Professor Sascha Dov Bachmann, Albanese’s hypocritical two-tier rush undermines our democracy.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has long positioned himself as a champion of due process, transparency, and democratic norms.

Kindness is not weakness, he tells us.

Yet his government’s frantic push to ram through omnibus legislation aimed at curbing civil rights and liberties… pic.twitter.com/1IgmhneA9S

— The Spectator Australia (@SpectatorOz) January 16, 2026

Hate speech is not Islamic terrorism, and where’s Pauline?

Pauline Hanson is the only political leader who has addressed the problem of Islamic extremism.

In the timeless wisdom of childhood playgrounds, we were taught that ‘sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me’. This simple adage points to a fundamental truth. Physical violence inflicts real harm, while mere words, no matter how offensive, do not equate to acts of brutality.

Yet, in the corridors of power in Canberra, the Albanese Labor government seems to have forgotten this distinction entirely.

Instead of confronting the deadly threat of Islamic terrorism head-on, they are diverting attention to nebulous concepts like ‘hate speech’, lumping in Islamophobia and homophobia as if they pose the same existential danger as the radical ideologies that have claimed innocent lives on Australian soil.

My latest in The Spectator Australia, Hate speech is not Islamic terrorism, and where’s Pauline?

Hate speech, while distasteful and divisive, is not Islamic terrorism.

The former might wound feelings or spark debate, but the latter results in bloodshed and shattered families.

At the horrific Bondi massacre, Islamic terrorism led to the senseless deaths of 15 innocent… pic.twitter.com/CDURpcRVvo

— The Spectator Australia (@SpectatorOz) January 16, 2026

Adelaide writers’ festival meets the ghosts of socialists past

Reasons given for boycotting the event included not being ‘party to silencing writers’.

The implosion of the Adelaide Writers’ Festival stands as a hard reminder of historical lessons ignored.

Initially, the board cancelled a scheduled Palestinian-Australian author. A mass exodus of left-wing authors followed, culminating in the resignation of festival director, Louise Adler, and the cancellation of the event.

The author’s cancellation also brought a wave of withdrawals from writers and others, protesting what they call censorship.

Reasons given for boycotting the event included not being ‘party to silencing writers’.

However, uninviting controversial writers from a publicly-funded event is a far cry from silencing writers in general. It is my view that if people want to write controversial stuff, then they can do so at their own expense.

Among those who withdrew from the publicly-funded event were ABC journalists, whose actions raise sharp questions about the dangers of blind idealism. Such misplaced idealism is not new.

In the Morning Double Shot newsletter, Terry Barnes wrote:

What is the collective noun for a gathering of useless people who deserve one-way tickets for the next rocket to the Sun? That’s right, a writers’ festival. No-one should mourn the demise of the 2026 Adelaide Writers’ Week, and nobody should express any sympathy for, let alone solidarity with, the person who caused the controversy, nor the luvvies who flounced out after her. The real issue is this. If you take taxpayers’ coin for your love-in, the government of the day which approves the funding has a right to say who comes to the party. If you don’t like it, send the money back and do your own thing. I could say more, but…Michael de Percy shares his own views on the stupidity.

 My latest in The Spectator Australia, Adelaide writers’ festival meets the ghosts of socialists past.

Australia will now face a difficult reality. In light of the Bondi massacre, there will be those who debate the ground between censorship and insensitivity.

Article | https://t.co/oPaVkDHZFT pic.twitter.com/PV8GofSPKk

— The Spectator Australia (@SpectatorOz) January 14, 2026