Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Australia's heartfelt sympathy and resolute solidarity is with the people of the United Kingdom with whom we stand today, as we always have and always will, as steadfast allies in freedom's cause. We condemn the terrorist attack in which a vehicle was used as a weapon to run down worshippers outside the Finsbury Park Mosque in London. Our thoughts are with the victims and their loved ones.

We continue to see vehicles used as a vector for terrorist attacks. Overnight in Paris, an explosive loaded car rammed a police van on the Champs-Elysees in what is being described as a botched suicide attack. Fortunately only the perpetrator was killed. Extremism and hatred must be resisted, confronted, defied and defeated in all of their forms. The Metropolitan Police have described the Finsbury Park attack as a clear attack on Muslims. As Prime Minister Theresa May said last night, 'Terrorism attempts to break the precious bonds of solidarity and citizenship that we share.' We stand with the UK, resolutely defiant, against terrorism in all its forms.

We are not halfway through 2017, but for the United Kingdom this year has already been marked by terror and tragedy. In March, Australians woke to news of a terrorist attack in Westminster—an attack on parliament, police and civilians—and it is less than a month since the United Kingdom was rocked by the horrific Islamist terror attack on Manchester arena, where 22 innocent young people were murdered and children and young children specifically targeted. Just over a fortnight ago, we saw a terrorist attack on London Bridge where eight people were killed, including two young Australians—Sara Zelenak and Kirsty Boden, who bravely ran towards the danger in an effort to help others.

Last week we saw an inferno engulf the Grenfell Tower in which at least 79 people are either dead or missing presumed dead. That tragic event has, again, highlighted the need for all high-rise buildings to comply with Australia's national construction code, and I have today written to the premiers and chief ministers asking them to set out the extent of the use of combustible cladding products and the actions they are taking to ensure compliance with the code.

The people of the United Kingdom have become too familiar with adversity but they are resilient. As the British High Commissioner to Australia Menna Rawlings said following the London Bridge attacks, 'People will continue to live their daily lives because we all know if we do not go to the pubs, the bars, restaurants and the concerts then that is what the terrorists want. We will absolutely retain our values and you will see people out and about on the streets in coming days.'

Australians should be reassured that our agencies are working relentlessly and tirelessly to keep Australians safe. We are very alert to the vulnerabilities of places of mass gathering, crowded places and the risk of attacks of the kind we have seen. We already have robust arrangements in Australia to protect them but there is room to do more and a need to do more. The government is, as honourable members know from my earlier national security statement, working closely with other jurisdictions and with our international counterparts on this matter, and next month a national strategy for protecting places of mass gathering and crowded places will be finalised. This is being done in collaboration with the security and police agencies of other jurisdictions in Australia and New Zealand, and of course local government and property owners and owners of those places and locations.

Our top priority is to keep Australians safe. At COAG this month, all jurisdictions agreed to strengthen our parole and bail laws and to comprehensively review all of our laws and practices, directed at ensuring we continue to protect Australians from violent extremism.

Bill Shorten (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the Prime Minister for his words. All of us in this place condemn this horrific attack and its perpetrator. We all offer whatever comfort and sympathy we can to the injured and the frightened. We send our condolences to a family mourning the loss of a loved one. And we should all be clear—very clear—about one thing: this attack was not revenge, it was not retribution; this was terrorism, this was violence aimed at the innocent, designed to spread fear and incite hatred. Despite the injuries it inflicted and the pain it caused, the attack failed. It failed because of the people of London and Britain, whose resilience, sadly, has been tried far too often in recent days and weeks. It failed because the people of London and Britain are bigger, are braver, are better than the extremists who seek to test them and divide them.

So far as we know, everyone injured in this attack was a Muslim, but every one of them was also an ordinary British citizen. Every one of them was a person of faith on their way home from evening prayers, standing outside the Muslim Welfare House, which, along with Finsbury Park Mosque, had helped to lead local commemorations to mark the one-year anniversary of MP Jo Cox's death at a moving ceremony 48 hours before an assuming hire van rammed the innocent crowd. The general secretary of the Finsbury Park Mosque said:

Both extremists do not represent us, do not represent our communities, do not represent our faiths. They are tiny minority, a bunch of murderers who only represent hatred, division and racism.

In the aftermath, the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said it well:

… Muslims will today be fasting and tonight praying and thinking once again of the heroic actions taken by our emergency services and ordinary bystanders.

For Australians, Finsbury Park is perhaps best known for being the home of the Arsenal Football Club. On match days, the streets and, indeed, the pubs are chock-a-block with boisterous fans on the way to Emirates Stadium. Many of them, young and old, wear jerseys with the No. 11. It is for Mesut Ozil. Mesut Ozil, for those of you who do not follow the English Premier League, is a practising Muslim. He is a German national champion of Turkish descent. He is a creative playmaker for Arsenal, one of a growing number of Muslim players making their mark in the Premier League. In January this year, against Burnley, he and teammate Shkodran Mustafi both paused to pray before kick-off. In July, next month, he will be on a plane coming to Australia, where Arsenal will play friendly games against Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers, and he is most welcome, as are the rest of his team. And when the new season starts off in August, I have no doubt that Arsenal fans of all faiths and none will be back at the stadium. They will be singing and chanting, strolling the streets. They are more interested in seeing their team than in worrying about the terrorists.

Tonight I am sure the worshippers at Finsbury Park will return to their prayers, because this is what democracies are about. Despite all of our arguments, it is what free peoples and free nations do in the face of fear. We do not hide. We do not change. We do not vilify classes of minorities. We live our lives. We carry on. We are proud of our own skin and we see no need to change. We keep the faith in our life, and our values will overcome all of the adversities.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition. As a mark of respect for the deceased and the injured, I ask all present to rise in their places.

Honourable members having stood in their places—

I thank the House.