Confidence decreases on safety of all faiths

More than half of Australians feel less confident that people of all faiths and backgrounds can live safely in this country since the Bondi Beach terrorist attack, according to new national polling commissioned by the Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM).

The survey found 52 per cent are less confident, against 15 per cent who are more confident and 32 per cent who reported no change. Among women, 59 per cent said they were less confident, compared with 44 per cent of men.

The proportion of Australians who say councils are doing enough to address ethnic and religiously motivated intolerance has halved, falling from 40 per cent in 2025 to 21 per cent. Those unsure rose from 12 per cent to 32 per cent, while 47 per cent said councils should be doing more, close to the 49 per cent recorded a year earlier.

Sixteen per cent said they had seen or heard of an antisemitic incident in their local area in the past 12 months, up from 12.5 per cent in 2025. Reported awareness was higher among younger respondents, with between 23 and 24 per cent of 18 to 34-year-olds reporting incidents, against nine per cent of those aged 65 and over. It was also higher in metropolitan areas, at 19 per cent, than in regional areas, at 10 per cent.

Asked to describe general public attitudes towards Jewish people in Australia, 30.5 per cent said they were negative, up from 28 per cent, while 29 per cent said they were positive, up from 24 per cent. Those unsure fell from 14 per cent to eight per cent.

Almost a quarter of respondents, 23 per cent, said racial or ethnic tensions in their local area had worsened over the past year, up five points from 18 per cent.

CAM public affairs officer Sheina Gutnick, whose father was murdered in the Bondi Beach attack in December 2025, said local communities were living in fear.

“Although there has been a coordinated response from all levels of government in response to Bondi, local leaders need to step up and address the fraying feeling of safety in the community,” Gutnick said.

“This is personal for me. My father was killed because hatred was allowed to grow unchecked. I would rather spend this year working with councils to turn this moment into action, so that by the first anniversary, we can point to meaningful change.

“Local councils are the front line of defence against all hate. We urge every mayor and councillor to speak out and step up – and to join our summit to learn how their peers around the world are tackling these rising threats.”

The polling found 45 per cent said they would be more likely to consider voting for a local councillor who acted to reduce religiously motivated intolerance, against five per cent who said they would be less likely.

Waverley Council mayor Will Nemesh, whose council is co-hosting this year’s summit, said councils could not outsource social cohesion.

“As the level of government closest to the community, councils have an obligation to take meaningful and decisive action on challenging antisemitism and hate, and fostering stronger social cohesion,” Nemesh said.

“The devastating terror attack at Bondi clearly highlighted the importance of local leadership. When hate arrived on our doorstep, it was the local community and its council that stood up first and responded to the unprecedented and unimaginable challenge. But even before 14 December, our Council declared that ‘never again’ would be more than a motto, and instead a call to action to guide our steadfast efforts to stamp out antisemitism. Every council in Australia has the same responsibility and this summit is where we learn how.”

Registrations are open for the Local Government Summit Against Antisemitism and For Social Cohesion, to be held in Sydney on November 26 and 27.

The Synesis Poll, conducted by Agenda C with Antenna Insights, surveyed 1035 Australian voters online between 21 and 24 July. Results were weighted by age, gender and location to the 2021 ABS Census, with a margin of error of approximately 3.1 per cent.