The Speaker of New South Wales Parliament has revealed his direct intervention to stop a neo-Nazi group from protesting directly outside the parliament building was rejected by internal security, exposing significant communication failures within the state's security apparatus.
Speaker's Frustration Over Security Decision
Greg Piper, the Independent Member for Lake Macquarie and Speaker of NSW's Legislative Assembly, told media outlets that he learned about the planned demonstration late on Friday afternoon when a staff member alerted him after being informed by the parliamentary security service itself.
The veteran MP immediately requested that parliament's internal security team move the protest away from the front of the historic building, but was told this wasn't possible to facilitate. "It seemed quite evident to me that this should not go on outside the parliament, but we were told there was nothing that could be done," Piper expressed with clear frustration.
Political Fallout and Communication Breakdown
The revelation comes as NSW Premier Chris Minns and Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon faced continued questioning about who authorised the protest, with both unable to provide clear answers about where responsibility lay for the decision.
Commissioner Lanyon has since blamed an "internal communication error" for allowing the Form 1 application for the protest to be approved by local police area command without appropriate escalation.
Piper didn't mince words about the significance of the failure, stating: "Most people would assume this would have gone up the chain to the premier. If I knew, so should he. To say this is a failure of communication is an understatement. This is a failure to be politically attuned to the implications of something like this."
Protest Aftermath and Security Measures
Despite being unable to prevent the gathering, Piper did secure additional security personnel, including special constables, to be present during the Saturday morning demonstration. "I just asked if they could make sure if there were people around," he explained.
More than sixty members of the neo-Nazi National Socialist Network stood in military-style formation on Macquarie Street, displaying a banner with the inflammatory message "Abolish the Jewish Lobby" directly in front of one of Australia's most important democratic institutions.
The Speaker viewed the entire episode as a profound failure, noting that while protest rights must be protected in a democratic society, parliament shouldn't appear acquiescent to hate groups. "They've completely been successful in what they set out to do," Piper acknowledged. "They've created these images of themselves in front of the most important building representing democracy in NSW, and the oldest public building in Australia, with a very ugly message."
Premier Minns has announced a review will examine both Saturday's rally and another by the same group outside parliament in June, specifically looking at communication between police, the premier's department, and the premier's office.
Piper concluded by emphasising his determination to ensure such an incident doesn't occur again, stating he's "looking forward to discussing it further to make sure it doesn't happen again."
