Oct 13, 2026 · 41 min · 11 segments
“The tragedy of Bondi was so preventable, because the writing was on the wall.” Josh Frydenberg was Treasurer of Australia from 2018 to 2022, Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party, and for 12 years the…
Josh FrydenbergGuest
Claire LehmannHost
So on the 14th of December last year, 15 people were murdered celebrating Hanukkah by two gunmen.
Uh, you've emerged as one of the most forceful voices in Australia against antisemitism.
Well, certainly it prompted me to speak out in a way that I had not sought to do after I left politics.
And I was very comfortable, uh, working in the private sec- sector, spending time with the family, not jumping in front of a camera to discuss the latest interest rate rise or the latest growth, uh, forecast, and that was okay with me.
But then October the 7th happened, and suddenly, and thank you for being so, uh, so outspoken too on these issues.
Suddenly here in Australia, people celebrated that brutal attack and the loss of life.
And the failure of the government, federal and state, but particularly the federal government, to set out clear red lines for the public that were not to be crossed, meant that those who want to hurt and harm felt emboldened.
Uh, and of course, it culminated all in the horrific Bondi attack, which led to 15 people losing their life, including the 10-year-old Matilda, in the worst terrorist incident in Australia's history.
And so I couldn't stay quiet when all that was taking place and not enough was being done by our government.
So I did speak out, and I did make speeches, wrote op-eds, did a, uh, documentary for News 24, which was done 14 months before Bondi and was a, a clarion call, I would've hoped, for more change and more action.
But it didn't come, and that's why the tragedy of Bondi was so preventable, because the writing was on the wall.
In January, you said that leadership on antisemitism can be the difference between life and death.
Well, when I interviewed John Howard for my documentary, I said to him, "What would have you done-
if you were the prime minister at the time of October the 7th?" He said his first call would've been to Kim Beazley, as the leader of the opposition, to say, "Please stand with me in the prime ministerial courtyard, and let's send a message to the Australian people," and that wasn't done.
So the lack of action meant that people could create this toxic environment of hate, and that these hate preachers could continue to promote their violent rhetoric, and that organizations like Hizb ut-Tahrir could continue to exist even though, um, it represented a national security threat.
So on the 14th of December last year, 15 people were murdered celebrating Hanukkah by two gunmen.
Uh, you've emerged as one of the most forceful voices in Australia against antisemitism.
Well, certainly it prompted me to speak out in a way that I had not sought to do after I left politics.
And I was very comfortable, uh, working in the private sec- sector, spending time with the family, not jumping in front of a camera to discuss the latest interest rate rise or the latest growth, uh, forecast, and that was okay with me.
But then October the 7th happened, and suddenly, and thank you for being so, uh, so outspoken too on these issues.
Suddenly here in Australia, people celebrated that brutal attack and the loss of life.
And the failure of the government, federal and state, but particularly the federal government, to set out clear red lines for the public that were not to be crossed, meant that those who want to hurt and harm felt emboldened.
Uh, and of course, it culminated all in the horrific Bondi attack, which led to 15 people losing their life, including the 10-year-old Matilda, in the worst terrorist incident in Australia's history.
And so I couldn't stay quiet when all that was taking place and not enough was being done by our government.
So I did speak out, and I did make speeches, wrote op-eds, did a, uh, documentary for News 24, which was done 14 months before Bondi and was a, a clarion call, I would've hoped, for more change and more action.
But it didn't come, and that's why the tragedy of Bondi was so preventable, because the writing was on the wall.
In January, you said that leadership on antisemitism can be the difference between life and death.
Well, when I interviewed John Howard for my documentary, I said to him, "What would have you done-
if you were the prime minister at the time of October the 7th?" He said his first call would've been to Kim Beazley, as the leader of the opposition, to say, "Please stand with me in the prime ministerial courtyard, and let's send a message to the Australian people," and that wasn't done.
So the lack of action meant that people could create this toxic environment of hate, and that these hate preachers could continue to promote their violent rhetoric, and that organizations like Hizb ut-Tahrir could continue to exist even though, um, it represented a national security threat.
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