{"id":2516,"date":"2026-03-09T15:10:15","date_gmt":"2026-03-09T04:10:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/7gs.au\/?p=2516"},"modified":"2026-03-26T23:15:16","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T12:15:16","slug":"royal-commission-into-antisemitism-submission-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/7gs.au\/index.php\/2026\/03\/09\/royal-commission-into-antisemitism-submission-1\/","title":{"rendered":"Royal Commission into antisemitism and social cohesion &#8211; Submission 1"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\">We Learned Nothing From Robodebt: Schedule 2 and the Royal Commission Deadline You Haven&#8217;t Heard About<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Twenty-eight months ago, the Robodebt Royal Commission delivered a scathing verdict: automated government decision-making without proper safeguards is incompatible with the rule of law. The scheme that unlawfully raised debts against 443,000 Australians was fundamentally flawed by design.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In January 2026, Parliament passed Schedule 2 of the <em>Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism (Firearms and Customs Laws) Act 2026<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>It replicates Robodebt&#8217;s structure.<\/strong><br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div data-wp-interactive=\"core\/file\" class=\"wp-block-file\"><object data-wp-bind--hidden=\"!state.hasPdfPreview\" hidden class=\"wp-block-file__embed\" data=\"https:\/\/7gs.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Submission1_v2.pdf\" type=\"application\/pdf\" style=\"width:100%;height:600px\" aria-label=\"Embed of Submission1_v2.\"><\/object><a id=\"wp-block-file--media-b246b232-7983-479c-82fa-69eb24bfc355\" href=\"https:\/\/7gs.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Submission1_v2.pdf\">Submission1_v2<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/7gs.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Submission1_v2.pdf\" class=\"wp-block-file__button wp-element-button\" download aria-describedby=\"wp-block-file--media-b246b232-7983-479c-82fa-69eb24bfc355\">Download<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This Friday, 13 March, is the deadline for submissions to the Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion&#8217;s preliminary report on urgent measures. Almost no one is talking about Schedule 2. They should be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is Schedule 2?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Schedule 2 introduced sections 92E-92G into the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation Act 1979 (ASIO Act). These provisions authorise:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Algorithmic intelligence assessment<\/strong> determining security outcomes (s 92E)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Ministerial expansion of scope<\/strong> without returning to Parliament (s 92F)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Statutory immunity from invalidity<\/strong> even when safeguards aren&#8217;t followed (s 92G(3))<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The legislation passed in response to the Bondi Beach terrorist attack, with the stated purpose of streamlining firearms licensing checks. But the statutory language isn&#8217;t limited to firearms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Five Fatal Features<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Robodebt Royal Commission identified structural features that enabled widespread unlawful harm despite officials believing they were implementing lawful policy. Compare:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><thead><tr><th>Feature<\/th><th>Robodebt<\/th><th>Schedule 2<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Automated harm<\/strong><\/td><td>Income averaging algorithm<\/td><td>Algorithmic security assessment<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>No notification<\/strong><\/td><td>Methodology concealed<\/td><td>Notification requirement deleted (s 36(1)(d) repealed)<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Limited review<\/strong><\/td><td>Debt assumed valid<\/td><td>Immunity from invalidity (s 92G(3))<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Opacity<\/strong><\/td><td>&#8220;Commercial in confidence&#8221;<\/td><td>Classified intelligence + proprietary systems<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Immunity claims<\/strong><\/td><td>Claimed, later rejected<\/td><td><strong>Enacted in statute<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That last point is critical. Robodebt&#8217;s immunity was eventually struck down by courts. Schedule 2&#8217;s immunity is written into law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Parliament Wasn&#8217;t Told<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here&#8217;s where it gets interesting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Explanatory Memorandum for the same legislation explicitly references the Robodebt Royal Commission when discussing <strong>ACIC<\/strong> (criminal intelligence) automation:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;The clauses in this Division are based on the Government&#8217;s response to recommendation 17.1 of the Royal Commission into the Robodebt Scheme Report and the Commonwealth Ombudsman&#8217;s Automated Decision-making Better Practice Guide.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For <strong>ASIO<\/strong> automation (sections 92E-92G)?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>\u2717 No reference to Robodebt<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u2717 No reference to Recommendation 17.1<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u2717 No reference to the Ombudsman&#8217;s Guide<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u2717 No explanation why Robodebt safeguards apply to one but not the other<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Statistical analysis of 159 pages of Hansard:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>&#8220;Robodebt&#8221;: 1 mention (Senator McDonald)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>&#8220;AI\/automation&#8221;: 1 mention (same senator)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>&#8220;Algorithm&#8221;: 0 mentions<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>&#8220;Section 92E\/92F\/92G&#8221;: 0 mentions<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>&#8220;Immunity from invalidity&#8221;: 0 mentions<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One senator identified the parallel. No further discussion occurred.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why This Matters: The Political Sustainability Problem<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The legislation was passed to protect Jewish Australians after a horrific terrorist attack. That purpose was genuine and important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But here&#8217;s the uncomfortable question: <strong>What happens when different people control these tools?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Australia&#8217;s offshore detention regime offers a case study. Created by a Coalition government in 2001 during the Tampa crisis, briefly dismantled by Labor in 2008, then re-established by Labor in 2012 and expanded by subsequent Coalition governments. The tool persisted across 24 years and multiple governments with very different ideological commitments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Tools created in crisis don&#8217;t expire when the crisis ends. They become permanent infrastructure.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Schedule 2 creates algorithmic assessment capabilities that will be available to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Future governments of unknown composition<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Governments facing different threat environments<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Governments with different views on who constitutes a &#8220;security risk&#8221;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Far-right elements are demonstrating at state parliament buildings with Nazi symbols. Political parties with records of targeting minority communities are polling at levels that could translate to parliamentary representation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Should tools capable of population-wide profiling based on ancestry exist, even if the current government has no intention to misuse them?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The 2026 Census Timing Problem<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In August 2026, Australia conducts its national Census. Question 23 asks: &#8220;What is the person&#8217;s ancestry?&#8221; (up to two responses).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In 2021, 99,956 Australians identified &#8220;Jewish&#8221; ancestry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The same database that could theoretically help with firearms licensing could theoretically assess anyone whose Census data indicates particular ancestry, religion, or national origin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sections 92E-92G + ministerial instruments + Census data = infrastructure for population-wide algorithmic profiling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>August 2026 is five months away.<\/strong> That&#8217;s a very limited window for democratic course correction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What You Can Do<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>The Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion<\/strong> is accepting submissions until <strong>Friday, 13 March 2026<\/strong> for inclusion in their preliminary report on urgent measures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Commission&#8217;s Terms of Reference ask: &#8220;What more should be done to protect the Jewish community and promote social cohesion?&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One answer: <strong>Don&#8217;t create institutional tools that could be weaponized against the communities they were designed to protect.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I&#8217;ve made a detailed submission examining these issues ([<a href=\"https:\/\/7gs.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Submission1_v2.pdf\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/7gs.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Submission1_v2.pdf\">available here &#8211; link to PDF<\/a>]). Key recommendations include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Suspend sections 92E-92G<\/strong> before operational deployment<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Refer to IGIS, Ombudsman, and NACC<\/strong> for investigation<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Apply Robodebt safeguards<\/strong> if automation framework is retained<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Protect 2026 Census data<\/strong> from algorithmic profiling<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But you don&#8217;t need to submit 198 pages. A brief submission identifying your concerns about:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Robodebt parallel<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The lack of parliamentary scrutiny<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Census data protection question<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The political sustainability problem<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8230;would contribute to the Commission&#8217;s consideration of urgent measures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Submission portal:<\/strong> [<a href=\"https:\/\/asc.royalcommission.gov.au\/\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/asc.royalcommission.gov.au\/\">Royal Commission website<\/a>]<br><strong>Deadline:<\/strong> Friday, 13 March 2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Robodebt Lesson<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Robodebt Royal Commission found that well-intentioned people implementing what they believed was lawful policy created a system that caused widespread unlawful harm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>The lesson wasn&#8217;t &#8220;don&#8217;t automate.&#8221; The lesson was &#8220;if you automate, do it with proper safeguards.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Twenty-eight months later, we passed legislation with the same structural flaws Robodebt exposed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We can either learn from Robodebt before harm occurs, or after.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>The Royal Commission has an opportunity to recommend we choose &#8220;before.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Read the full submission:<\/strong> [<a href=\"https:\/\/7gs.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Submission1_v2.pdf\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/7gs.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Submission1_v2.pdf\">link<\/a>]<br><strong>Royal Commission website:<\/strong> [<a href=\"https:\/\/asc.royalcommission.gov.au\/\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/asc.royalcommission.gov.au\/\">link<\/a>]<br><strong>Make a submission:<\/strong> Deadline Friday, 13 March 2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We Learned Nothing From Robodebt: Schedule 2 and the Royal Commission Deadline You Haven&#8217;t Heard About Twenty-eight months ago, the Robodebt Royal Commission delivered a scathing verdict: automated government decision-making without proper safeguards is incompatible with the rule of law. The scheme that unlawfully raised debts against 443,000 Australians was fundamentally flawed by design. In &#8230; <a title=\"Royal Commission into antisemitism and social cohesion &#8211; Submission 1\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/7gs.au\/index.php\/2026\/03\/09\/royal-commission-into-antisemitism-submission-1\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Royal Commission into antisemitism and social cohesion &#8211; Submission 1\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2516","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/7gs.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2516","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/7gs.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/7gs.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/7gs.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/7gs.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2516"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/7gs.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2516\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2527,"href":"https:\/\/7gs.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2516\/revisions\/2527"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/7gs.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2516"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/7gs.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2516"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/7gs.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2516"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}