Peter Dutton would support a referendum on anti-Semitic visa-holder deportation: Leeser

Aussies could be going for another referendum if a controversial proposal to deport people convicted of anti-Semitic hatred is blocked by the High Court.

Peter Dutton will ask Australians to decide on the deportation of people on visas convicted of anti-Semitic crimes at a referendum - if potential laws were overturned by the High Court, a Liberal Party stalwart has told a controversial Jewish lobby group.

The Opposition leader first floated deporting people convicted of hate speech and other hate-related crimes, specifically about anti-Semitism, in 2023 in the days after the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel, before doubling down on the issue in February.

Mr Dutton told Sunrise host Karl Stefanovic visa holders could be deported under Section 501 of the character assessment provisions, which is also used for “bikies and rapists”, if the powers of the act were extended under a proposal by the Opposition.

On Wednesday, Sydney Liberal MP Julian Leeser told the Australian Jewish Association in a live-streamed interview that “people are entitled to go to the courts”.

He also flagged the laws might be challenged - including at the High Court where they might fall under the Constitution.

Sydney Liberal MP Julian Leeser said Peter Dutton would support a referendum on deportations for race hate. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

If they did, Mr Leeser went on to tell the panel that “Peter Dutton has even said, in relation to some of these visa cancellation matters, if these matters relate to something to do with the constitution, that he’s willing to countenance a referendum on those issues”.

It came after Mr Leeser was asked during a Q&A segment of the hour-long livestream, titled “Coalition Policies Impacting the Jewish Community and Israel”, whether efforts to deport “Hamas supporters” would be “stymied” by the country’s courts.

“We take these issues seriously, but people do have the right to challenge decisions,” Mr Leeser said.

“That is what it is to be in a country that believes in the rule of law.

“That’s always a value that’s worth fighting for it’s something we share with the State of Israel, that the Government of Israel.

“Governments of various stripes in Israel don’t always like decisions of the courts, but that is part of living in a democracy that respects the rule of law.”

Mr Dutton first raised deporting people during protests following Israel’s invasion of Gaza. Picture: NewsWire / Flavio Brancaleone

The Israeli government, under controversial longtime leader Benjamin Netanyahu and his Likud party, have repeatedly found themselves at loggerheads with the country’s highest court, including the conscription of ultra-orthodox jews – an impasse that collapsed multiple coalitions.

Mr Lesser’s statements come days after the Donald Trump administration moved to deport Mahmoud Khalil, a US permanent resident and Columbia University graduate, over his role in pro-Palestine protests which took over the popular university in 2024.

Mr Khalil was the holder of a US Green Card and married to a US woman, but was arrested and had his card revoked by US authorities under executive orders by President Trump which seek to prohibit alleged acts of anti-Semitism.

Mr Dutton has been critical of Labor’s handle of a spike in alleged anti-Semitic attacks. Picture: NewsWire / Glenn Campbell

Mr Lesser, the son of Jewish refugees from Nazi Germany, has been an outspoken critic of Labor and its handling of an alleged rise in anti-Semitic incidents following Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel and subsequent protests.

During the livestream, Mr Leeser hit out at Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus, the most senior person in government of Jewish descent, for not better protecting the Jewish community with the “awesome power”” afford by the office.

“He’s either failed to step up or he had to be dragged kicking and screaming to get there,” Mr Leeser said.

He went to blame Labor for “abandoning” Israel and for institution policies he said were in opposition to the Jewish state, including voting at the United Nations General Assembly last year.

Originally published as Peter Dutton would support a referendum on anti-Semitic visa-holder deportation: Leeser