<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?> <docID>339009</docID> <postdate>2025-02-25 08:29:11</postdate> <headline>PM faces thorny questions, hostile public grilling</headline> <body><p><img class="size-full wp-image-339011" src="https://citynews.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/anthony-albanese-e1740432453405.jpg" alt="" width="748" height="499" /></p> <caption>Prime Minister Anthony Albanese faced difficult questions from a member of the Q+A audience. Photo: ABC</caption> <p><span class="kicker-line">By <strong>Dominic Giannini</strong> in Canberra</span></p> <p><strong>Anthony Albanese has faced a public grilling, fronting an at times hostile TV audience as he battles dismal polling.</strong></p> <p>Fronting the ABC's Q+A program, the prime minister had a thorny interaction over his actions to protect the Jewish community amid a spike in anti-Semitic attacks.</p> <p>A Jewish mother of four asked when she could safely identify her religion in public.</p> <p>"It is frankly completely unacceptable that a young Jewish person feels like they can't identify openly or wear their school uniform on public transport around," Mr Albanese said.</p> <p>"It's something that I think is a source of enormous regret."</p> <p>But the audience member wasn't satisfied with his answer, chastising him for not going harder.</p> <p>"You have to understand we're a broken community now, we are hurting – you're our prime minister, you're our leader, there was hate speech and nothing was done," she said.</p> <p>"We've suffered because nothing was done."</p> <p>Mr Albanese reaffirmed that he had called out hate and anti-Semitism in all forms consistently.</p> <p>He further called for people to come together when asked about rising Islamophobia.</p> <p>"A woman shouldn't be attacked in the street for wearing a hijab and that quite unfortunately occurs far too often," Mr Albanese said.</p> <p>Social media had a role to play in fostering tolerance, he added.</p> <p>"People can say things on social media which are hateful, that are divisive and they'd never say to a person's face and that somehow makes it more acceptable," he said.</p> <p>Mr Albanese committed to further housing help after being pushed on the housing crisis by Victorian Socialist candidate Jordan van den Lamb – an affordable rental advocate known as "purplepingers" who has millions of social media followers.</p> <p>On indigenous policy, the prime minister walked back his commitment to a truth-telling commission and treaty – the other two parts of the Uluru statement.</p> <p>The referendum to enshrine an indigenous voice in the constitution – a key component of the Uluru statement – failed and the decision had to be respected, Mr Albanese said.</p> <p>"We've heard the statement from the Australian people, we're concentrating on economic empowerment," Mr Albanese said.</p> <p>"We do need another direction."</p> <p>Labor has been struggling in the polls and Mr Albanese's personal popularity has also plummeted as Opposition Leader Peter Dutton gains ground.</p> <p>But Roy Morgan has given Labor a light on the hill, putting it ahead 51-49 on a two-party preferred basis after the Reserve Bank cut interest rates.</p> <p>The poll predicted a minority government with Labor's primary vote increased 3.5 per cent to 31.5.</p> <p>The coalition took a three per cent hit, dropping to 36.5 per cent, while support for independents remained at 10 per cent.</p> <p>Climate 200 backer Simon Holmes a Court has emailed supporters asking for $270,000 for "wall-to-wall TV ads to give to three key independent seats" to combat the opposition's nuclear energy policy and boost independent candidates.</p> </body>