OPED – Why a Federal Royal Commission Will Be Best for NSW
Published 31 December 2025
As NSW continues to come to terms with the horror of the Bondi attack, it is becoming clearer by the day that we owe it to the victims, the injured, their families and our broader community to uncover the full truth about what went wrong, and why.
Families who lost loved ones that day have now called for the establishment of a Commonwealth royal commission into the rise of anti-Semitism, extremism and the systemic failures that preceded this attack.
Their request is not abstract or theoretical. It is grounded in a simple expectation that every avenue relevant to what occurred at Bondi is properly examined.
The NSW government has indicated it will establish a state-based inquiry. That is an important and immediate step, and one the NSW Opposition supports. NSW must scrutinise the actions of its own agencies and institutions.
But the reality is that many of the questions raised by this attack cannot be fully answered within the confines of a state process alone.
The pathways to radicalisation, the intelligence environment, online extremism, and inter-agency co-ordination all directly affect community safety in NSW. Yet significant elements of those systems sit outside the reach of a state inquiry.
That is not a criticism, it is a structural reality.
If NSW is to understand whether warning signs were missed and whether existing frameworks were fit for purpose, then a mechanism capable of examining all relevant evidence is required. That is why a Commonwealth royal commission is in the best interests of NSW.
Such a commission would not replace the state inquiry. It would complement it, providing the scope necessary to ensure NSW is not left with unanswered questions.
Public confidence depends on knowing that no line of inquiry has been ruled out, no agency exempted from scrutiny and no failure left unexplored. Anything less risks leaving gaps in our understanding and gaps in our defences.
Our Jewish community members deserve more than reassurance. They deserve certainty that anti-Semitism is being confronted with seriousness and resolve. And
communities across our state deserve confidence that every lesson possible will be learned to prevent such an atrocity from occurring again.
Premier Chris Minns has an opportunity to put the safety and security of NSW front and centre by formally requesting the federal government establish a royal
commission. That step would ensure NSW is not constrained by jurisdictional limits and has access to the full picture, not a partial one.
In taking that step, the government will have the full support of the NSW Opposition. We stand ready to work constructively to ensure NSW drives a response that matches the gravity of what has occurred.
