Peter Dutton pledges minimum jail terms for anti-Semitic acts

Peter Dutton is calling for the introduction of mandatory six year minimum sentences for terror crimes if he wins the upcoming federal election.

The Coalition have also pledged to create a new Commonwealth offence for threatening places of worship.

The election pitch comes after a rise of antisemitism offences across the county, including on the Adass Israel synagogue in Melbourne and on the former home of a Jewish leader in Sydney’s east.

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Shadow Home affairs minister James Patterson has described the attacks as “completely out of control”.

At a press conference outside the Central Synagogue in Sydney, Patterson asserted that “further initiatives are necessary” to curb the rise.

In addition to the minimum sentences for terror offences, Patterson announced minimum sentences of at least 12 months for the display of hate symbols associated with terror groups.

He said it was “clear that people undertaking these acts of terror do not fear the consequences of their behaviour”.

“We need to toughen our laws to make sure those consequences are very clear,” Paterson said.

Dutton has also promised to convene a national cabinet of federal, state and territory leaders, which the Coalition have been calling for since November 2023 in the wake of the Hamas attacks in Israel.

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