A committee report on extremism in Victoria has called for federal lobbying. 

Members of the Victorian parliament’s Legal and Social Issues Committee have had an inquiry into extremism in Victoria, leading to a 150-page report that has 12 recommendations to assist in minimising threats from violent extremists.

The report says the Victorian government should lobby the Commonwealth on extremist groups that are “engaging in preparing, planning, assisting or fostering the doing of a terrorist act, or advocating the doing of a terrorist act”.

Committee chair Fiona Patten says extremism is not something committees typically consider at a state level.

“Extremism is a complex global problem for which there are no easy solutions. The extremist groups and individual actors that operate in Victoria do not exist in a vacuum,” Patten said.

“They have connections nationally and transnationally. However, I believe that consideration of extremism is relevant at every level of government, and there is much that the state government can do.”

Ms Patten says the recommendations in the report are only a “starting point” for meeting certain challenges.

It recommends amendments to the ‘fit and proper test’ in firearms laws to include a category related to people who are members of extremist groups.

It also calls for the Victorian government to advocate for a cross-jurisdictional database of registered firearms and firearms licence holders.

“I believe that limitations on access to firearms is one protective factor we have in Victoria and Australia, and we must maintain those limits,” Ms Patten said.

It also calls for the state to encourage the use of federal proscription or banning of violent extremist groups.

“Although this power is held by the Commonwealth, the Committee received several submissions from stakeholders expressing concerns that the power to proscribe an organisation as a terrorist group was not being used as extensively as it could be with regard to far-right violent extremist organisations (as well as other violent extremist organisations),” the report says.

“The submitters requested that the Victorian State Government advocate to the Commonwealth Minister for Home Affairs that particular extremist groups active in Victoria be proscribed as terrorist organisations.”