Bondi Royal Commisson: Anthony Albanese picks counter-terrorism official as new National Security Advisor

A senior Home Affairs official who serves as the department’s Deputy Counter-Terrorism Coordinator has been appointed the Prime Minister’s new National Security Advisor as the Albanese government prepares for the Royal Commission into the Bondi attack.

The Nightly can reveal Gemma Smyth will replace former intelligence analyst and Mandarin speaker Philippa Brant, who stepped down from Anthony Albanese’s office last month.

In a professional online networking profile the Home Affairs Department First Assistant Secretary describes herself as “an accomplished strategist with 20 years of Commonwealth Government experience”.

“I have a diverse background in HR, workforce planning, industrial relations, strategic policy, program management and capability development. For 15 years I have led teams in the development of major strategic initiatives in the law enforcement and national security arena.”

Members of the national security community say that there is a possibility the Home Affairs official will be called to give evidence to the Bondi Royal Commission given the position she held last year when the worst terror attack on Australian soil took place.

“I think her appointment signals that the government is wary of how serious the threat of extremism has become, and that perhaps the focus was not quite as sharp as it could have been previously,” a government insider tells The Nightly.

On Monday evening the country’s newly appointed top intelligence official warned that the threat of Islamic extremism is “absolutely not a thing of the past”, and the Bondi attacks starkly illuminated that trend.

“Its persistence is remarkable. Its threat is undeniable, and it remains a very close focus of many colleagues across the national intelligence community,” Kathy Klugman, the head of the Office for National Intelligence, told Senate estimates.

“The problem globally of Islamic extremist terrorism remains right up the top of the list when it comes to global extremist action and terrorism threats,” the ONI boss said, months after being appointed by Mr Albanese.

Previously Ms Klugman served as the Prime Minister’s principal international adviser, and was named as the new head of ONI in October after her predecessor Andrew Shearer was made Australia’s next ambassador to Japan.

The Nightly has approached the Prime Minister’s office for comment about the new National Security Advisor appointment, but it has not yet responded.