Albanese to address ‘shock and fear’ over alleged Invasion Day terror attack in annual Closing the Gap speech

Anthony Albanese will use his speech to announce extra funding for Indigenous health, employment, food security, mental health and domestic violence programs, intended to help states and territories meet the revised Closing the Gap targets. Photograph: Lukas Coch/EPA

Anthony Albanese will use his annual Closing the Gap speech to acknowledge the “shock and fear” of First Nations people after the alleged terrorist attack in Perth on 26 January.

The alleged attack occurred at an Invasion Day rally attended by more than 2,500 people at Forrest Place in the CBD, where a 31-year-old man allegedly threw what police have described as a homemade fragment bomb containing screws and ball-bearings surrounded by explosive liquid. The device did not detonate.