Arabic version: نواب نيو ساوث ويلز ينتقدون إحاطة أمنية في البرلمان

According to ABC News, a safety briefing intended to reassure New South Wales MPs left some politicians more concerned about their protection at parliament. Liberal MP Alister Henskens said there was a high degree of anxiety after the meeting and that some MPs were in tears because the answers were inadequate.

The briefing followed an attack on federal independent MP Helen Haines in Victoria and a security breach at NSW parliament last week, when an anti-coal protester jumped the public-gallery barrier onto the chamber floor. The demonstrator was restrained by MPs and the deputy serjeant-at-arms until special constables arrived. Henskens said the issue was the slowness of the security response.

Henskens said the briefing appeared to gloss over the incident, with the breach raised only during questions. Several unnamed MPs agreed, with one saying the “elephant in the room” was not addressed and another describing the session as a “box-ticking exercise”. North Shore MP Felicity Wilson and Hawkesbury MP Robyn Preston were among politicians who advocated heightened chamber security.

MPs were told that stopping the audio-visual transmission of Question Time during the protest — standard protocol intended to deny interrupters multi-camera coverage — also left security personnel without a clear picture of events in the chamber. Concerns were also raised over re-entry arrangements after a fire alarm evacuation last week.

Speaker Greg Piper said he took MPs’ security seriously and that additional special constables had been assigned following the breach. Parliament is undertaking a major security upgrade, including additional checkpoints. Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon said threats were taken seriously, while MPs were encouraged to avoid attending public events alone and to be careful about advertising their locations.