IN BRIEF
- The government is expected to respond to a major report on Islamophobia on Saturday.
- SBS News understands it will not implement all 54 recommendations.
The federal government will establish an education taskforce aimed at tackling Islamophobia and training politicians and public servants as part of its response to the special envoy to combat Islamophobia's landmark report.
But SBS News understands the government will not endorse several of the 54 recommendations Aftab Malik put forward in his report handed to the prime minister 10 months ago, casting doubt from Muslim community leaders over the government's commitments to adequately tackle Islamophobia.
Malik called for a ban on religious discrimination, for Muslims to join Sikhs and Jews in being explicitly protected in existing racial discrimination laws, and an independent review into counterterrorism laws to investigate whether Muslims in Australia were discriminated against.
He also recommended the government set up a commission of inquiry into Islamophobia, as well as a separate inquiry into anti-Palestinian and anti-Arab racism, which he said increased as a result of the government's lack of "moral action" for Middle Eastern diaspora.
The government's response, expected to be released on Saturday, will outline other measures to help tackle the rise in anti-Muslim behaviour in the country.
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A spokesperson told SBS the government is "focused on combating Islamophobia and is carefully considering Mr Malik's report and recommendations, with a response to be provided soon".
"The Albanese government has zero tolerance for Islamophobia. Every Australian, regardless of race or religion, deserves to feel safe, respected, and included in our community," the government spokesperson said.
Australian Federal Police community liaison teams will be expanded to respond to Islamophobia in the community and there will be targeted support as well a boost in multicultural grants to bolster Muslim community organisations.
The response could further test Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's relationship with some Muslim Australians, many of whom have expressed disappointment in what they say is the government’s failure to address Islamophobia.
There has been a 650 per cent rise in Islamophobic attacks from October 2023 to June 2026, according to the Islamophobia Register. The organisation said the total number of reports in that time was more than 2,600.
Relations between the government and some Muslim Australians have been strained following the government's response to conflict in the Middle East and what critics perceive as a lack of support for Lebanese and Palestinian people.
In March, Albanese, joined by Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke, was heckled in a hostile reception at one of his most recent public engagements with the Muslim community on Eid at Lakemba Mosque in Sydney's south-west.
The prime minister also faced pushback for what critics said was a delay in responding to the report by the special envoy to combat antisemitism, Jillian Segal, which she handed down in July 2025.
Four days after the Bondi Beach terror attack, when two gunmen inspired by the self-proclaimed Islamic State group killed 15 people at a Jewish family event in December, the government said it would work through the implementation of all Segal's 13 key recommendations.
Part of its action to tackle antisemitism also included an antisemitism education taskforce, as well as providing Burke with new powers to cancel or reject visas for people shown to deliver hate speech.
In the wake of the massacre, Albanese also set up the Royal Commission on Antisemitism and Social Cohesion, which is currently holding public hearings.
In January, the government was forced to amend a bill aimed at tackling hate speech — one of the recommendations by Segal — after both the Coalition and the Greens ruled out support. The laws later passed, with a provision clamping down on racial vilification removed.
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