Albanese says Ley was undermined; Coalition plans to criminalise assistance

Anthony Albanese said former opposition leader Sussan Ley was undermined by colleagues Angus Taylor and Andrew Hastie during her 276‑day tenure, noting she never got to give a budget reply and did not complete a year in office. The opposition has proposed making it a criminal offence to assist Australians with links to Islamic State to return home.

Shadow foreign minister Ted O’Brien told RN Breakfast the change would close a loophole, bar the government from outsourcing repatriation and apply “across the board”; he said there would be no “automatic exemption” for children and suggested the law could penalise non‑government organisations.

Health minister Mark Butler dismissed the proposal as a grab for a headline that could criminalise aid workers, saying the government had seen only newspaper articles and was focused on applying the strict letter of the law.

Australia

anthony albanese, sussan ley, angus taylor, andrew hastie, ted o'brien, mark butler, coalition, criminalise assistance, repatriation, islamic state