A rapid NSW Government inquiry into banning hate speech has drawn submissions urging caution from organisations usually thought to be in opposition to each other. The inquiry into “Measures to prohibit slogans that incite hatred” will report by January 31.
“Our first response to bad speech should be better speech,” says a submission from the Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney, reported in the Catholic Weekly. “Engaging in respectful civil discourse should be possible without the threat of arrest and prosecution. Legal prohibitions and sanctions are not the ideal way to address speech that incites hatred, and the criminal law is only a very small part of dealing with this issue.”
Responding to the idea canvassed by the NSW Premier Chris Minns that the slogan “Globalise the Intifada” should be banned, the Archdiocese suggested activists could simply substitute readily understood acronyms to communicate their violent or hateful message: “Proscribing certain phrases as ‘inherently hateful’ ignores context, which is always important.”
“Prohibition and punishment are only two small tools in protecting against hateful speech,” says the submission. “The better way to protect against hateful rhetoric is to educate people in civil discourse and positive human behaviour.”
A submission from the NSW Council for Civil Liberties makes similar comments: “NSWCCL believes a more sound approach to responding to speech which is inherently hateful is to ban speech which incites violence. We consider this an acceptable level of restriction on freedom of speech. Furthermore, this exemplifies conduct which has general application, rather than attempting to describe or list every slogan currently in use that the NSW Government deems offensive.”
The Council for Civil Liberties argues that “Globalise the intifada has a broad range of meaning: “The NSWCCL emphasises that any recommendations or proposed offence directed toward the prevention of hatred and uplifting of social cohesion should do so without being limited solely to one subset of the NSW community… The Arabic word ‘intifada’ is one that translates literally to “shaking off.” To suggest using the term “shaking off” or to “globalise the shaking off” is “inherently hateful” or one that will “lead to incitement of hatred and threaten community safety” would be absurd. It follows then that
attempts, existing or proposed, seeking to restrict the use of “globalise the intifada” are ones that
restrict specifically the speech of the Arabic-speaking community.”
The United Kingdom, not the best practice
The inquiry terms of reference specifically call for “Australian and international examples of best practice to combat the use of such slogans, including measures and approaches taken in the United Kingdom.
The Catholic Archdiocese and NSWCCL push back strongly. “The UK is not a good model for NSW to follow in seeking to address the incitement of hatred and promote social harmony and cohesion,” according to the Archdiocese and the Catholic Weekly gave examples
“Comedian Graham Linehan was arrested by five armed officers over three transphobic tweets.
“Australian women’s soccer star Sam Kerr was dragged into court over a drunken remark made to a policeman. After calling him “stupid” and “white,” she was charged with racially aggravated harassment.”
The Council for Civil Liberties cites concerns regarding Palestinian activists in the UK: “The United Kingdom government has taken extremely repressive measures regarding the pro-Palestine movement.
“In 2024, the United Kingdom government proscribed the direct action group, Palestine Action, as a terrorist organisation. Since then, over 2700 people have been arrested for defying the proscription and expressing support for the group. … On 17 December 2025, following the Bondi terror attack, the UK’s Metropolitan Police and Greater Manchester Police released a joint statement announcing that they would be ‘more assertive’ and begin arresting any persons observed using the phrase ‘globalise the intifada.’
“In the week that followed, police arrested four people for allegedly using the phrase during
pro-Palestine protests; each was charged with “racially aggravated public order offences” under
s 5 of the Public Order Act 1986 and s 31 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. These arrests
have inflamed community tensions.”
Albanese hate speech laws
Submissions are being received for a parallel inquiry into the Albanese Government’s Exposure Draft of the Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism Bill 2026.
The draft bill is here: https://www.ag.gov.au/sites/default/files/2026-01/combatting-antisemitism-hate-and-extremism-bill-2026.pdf
It combines banning of hate groups, tougher gun laws, migration rules, and hate speech provisions in an omnibus package. Submissions close tomorrow, and The Other Cheek will follow up.
One controversial provision is the exemption of religious texts with the PM citing the Old Testament. “I encourage you to read the Old Testament and see what’s there and see if you outlaw that, what would occur,” he told reporters, according to a Nine report.
“So we need to be careful. We consulted with faith groups, not just with the Jewish community.
“We want to make sure there’s the broadest possible support for this legislation, but we also want to make sure that there aren’t unintended consequences of the legislation as well.”