Australia’s leading Anglo-Celtic advocacy group has demanded the NSW Police Minister retract an antiwhite remark she made towards another MP in parliament earlier this month.
Labor MP Yasmin Catley made the controversial comment during a heated budget estimates discussion on September 3, in response to independent MP Mark Latham pushing back against figures she provided claiming there had been 700 alleged anti-Semitic attacks in Sydney.
Mr Latham said that only about 280 were anti-Semitic, of which many were “low level”, and said he would have had a similar number of attacks against him during the same time period.
“Isn’t it time to tell the Jewish community to grow up and get in the real world, where they’re barracking for one side in a fierce conflict in Gaza and there’s bound to be some pushback but, luckily, here in Australia with our laid-back culture, no serious signs of homegrown, serious anti-Semitic ideology are evident in Sydney?” he asked.
Ms Catley replied: “That’s offensive, Mr Latham. You’re a White Australian male, so you would not know what they’re feeling.”
NSW MLC Mark Latham on jews being constantly outraged at everything: “Isn’t it time to tell the jewish community to grow up?”
Police Minister Yasmin Catley: “That’s offensive, Mr Latham. You’re a White Australian male, so you wouldn’t know what they’re feeling.” pic.twitter.com/s8bM1JvzBT
— Australians vs. The Agenda (@ausvstheagenda) September 3, 2025
British Australian Community (BAC) President Harry Richardson on Monday condemned Ms Catley’s comment, saying it was “discriminatory and unacceptable from any elected representative”.
“By invoking Mr Latham’s ethnicity and gender to dismiss his perspective, the Minister undermined the principles of equality, respect, and democratic debate that New South Wales’ communities expect and deserve,” he said.
“The British Australian Community calls on Minister Catley to immediately retract her racist remark and issue an unqualified public apology to MLC Mark Latham and to White Australian communities.
“We further call on the Premier and Cabinet to make clear that racist, prejudicial language has no place in the Parliament or the Ministry, and to refer the matter to the appropriate parliamentary authorities under the Code of Conduct.”
Mr Latham later said that his questions to Ms Catley were related to the NSW government’s controversial “hate speech” laws that were rushed through after hysteria over a fake anti-Semitic terror plot, triggering an inquiry into whether Premier Chris Minns misled parliament about the Dural caravan hoax.
“We’ve been involved in legislation, and a lot of MPs don’t regard it as valid. We’re trying to get to the truth of what has gone on in our city. It’s very important given the nature of this debate, which is fuelled by others on both sides of the fence,” Mr Latham told Acting Police Commissioner Peter Thurtell.
“So if you can help in that regard with as much of the data – because, obviously after we heard about the origins of the Dural caravan and then heard about the work of the Iranian Government that has been identified, we’re wanting to strip it down to those who are people in Sydney acting out of anti-Semitic ideology, a hatred of Jews, doing these things in a serious way, not just driving past the synagogue and yelling out something stupid, but a serious attack on property or people.”
Later during the same budget estimates hearing Chair Sue Higginson, a far-left Greens MP, asked the Commissioner if there were any officers who “identify as trans women”, and whether NSW Police practiced “DEI”.
When Mr Thurtell said that it did, Ms Higginson accused him of “failing the test” because of the “preponderance of White males like I see sitting in front of me here now”.
Header image: Ms Catley making the racist remark (NSW Parliament).
