Neo-Nazi group National Socialist Network criminalised under hate laws passed after Bondi terror attack | Australian law
The government has banned neo-Nazi group the National Socialist Network, also known as White Australia, listing it as a banned hate group under legislation passed in the wake of the Bondi terror attacks.
The listing would mean that activities such as supporting, funding, training, recruiting and participating in the group would constitute a criminal offense with a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.
Home secretary Tony Burke said the listing would come into effect at midnight on Friday and warned that anyone attending a rally linked to or associated with these groups would be “taking risks”.
“None of this stops bigoted people from having terrible ideologies, but it does prevent this group from organizing, it prevents them from meeting, and it prevents some of the horrific bigoted rallies that we see in our country,” Burke said.
“This sends a clear message to people who believe in racial supremacy that their views have no place in Australia.”
The group, previously called NSN, announced it would disband just hours before the legislation was introduced in a special session of parliament in January, but Burke instead said they were “phoenixes” and its members continued to operate.
“Neo-Nazis have gone after just about every different group you can imagine, whether they’re Jewish, Muslim, Asian, First Nations, they’ve engaged in a range of examples of bigotry, and it all fits into their white supremacist ideology,” Burke said.
“It has become clear today that they are now a proscribed group under Australian law.”
The group became the second group listed under the law by the government, after Islamist group Hizb ut Tahrir, on the recommendation of the Australian Security Intelligence Agency (Asio).
The coalition’s home affairs spokesman, Jonathon Duniam, welcomed the move on Friday, saying the public did not want to see individuals evade justice by “simply tearing down a banner and reappearing under a different name”.
“The list sends a clear message that organizations that seek to undermine our society and spread extremist ideology have no place in Australia,” Duniam said in a statement.
In response to the Bondi terror attack on 14 December 2025, the government agreed antisemitism laws, including a new listing regime, as well as stronger penalties for hate crimes and a gun buyback scheme.
The government singled out Hizb ut Tahrir and NSN as two groups that demonstrated the need for new laws. Burke and Asio chief executive Mike Burgess said the groups were operating in a “legal but egregious” way, having previously crossed the threshold to be listed as a terrorist organisation.
Burke said Asio recommended the government consider listing White Australia in April, which it said met the legal threshold.
The legislation would allow the government to use the regulation to capture a group that phoenixes rather than listing them separately. Burke said the principle of using the regulation would be based on “deciding whether there is a continuation of the organization.”
Burke added that Asio currently has no other organizations it is considering listing.
Executive Council of Australian Jews Co-CEO Peter Wertheim welcomed the listing and said his organization had been calling for the measure since 2021.
“No matter what they call themselves or how they structure themselves, these groups use all the techniques of thuggery and intimidation that the Nazis were always known to use against Jewish communities and other groups they targeted.”
