Labor Blocks Coalition’s Proposed Bill to Criminalise Repatriation Assistance

Minister Tony Burke said the bill was a clumsy attempt by the Coalition that would do nothing to stop people it did not want from returning to Australia.

People walk beside a van with their belongings for departure at the Roj camp in al Malikiyah, Syria, on February 15, 2026. These families, who had been affiliated with ISIS, are among 11 Australian families repatriated from the Roj camp. The transfer operations faced challenges and obstacles, leading to the families being returned to the camp until the issue is resolved. Photo by Amjad Kurdo / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

The Albanese government has blocked a Coalition bid to introduce a new law aimed at criminalising assistance for individuals returning to Australia from declared terrorist hotspots.

Opposition Leader Angus Taylor moved to suspend standing orders on March 3 to bring forward a private member’s bill titled “Keep Australians Safe.”