Network Message: Crown Land Bill passes NSW Parliament

The Crown Land Management Amendment (Statutory Review) Bill 2026 has passed NSW Parliament. NSW Aboriginal Land Council (NSWALC) is deeply disappointed by this outcome and the actions of the Minns Government.

The Government chose to weaken Aboriginal land rights rather than fix decades of delay, determine more than 44,000 outstanding claims or negotiate properly with the Land Rights Network.

During this process, lawful Aboriginal land claims were portrayed as threats to public assets and local communities. This fuelled fear, division and resentment towards Aboriginal people for exercising rights provided under NSW law.

Despite the outcome, the advocacy of the Land Rights Network made a difference.

Together, we secured important changes to the Bill, including:

Removal of the “lawful use” provision
- The Government will remove the provision that could have treated the granting of a Crown land lease as a lawful use of the land under other legislation, including the ALRA.
- This was a significant concern because it could have affected whether land was claimable under the ALRA.
At least 28 days for consultation
- Where land is subject to an undetermined Aboriginal land claim, the relevant LALC must be given at least 28 days to comment on a proposed validation or variation. A longer period may be provided for complex matters.
Decisions must be made by the Minister
- The decision to validate or vary a Crown land tenure must be made personally by the Minister for Lands and Property.
- The Minister will not be able to delegate these powers to departmental officers.
Limits on changing a validated tenure
- If a tenure is retrospectively validated because it provides a community benefit, its purpose could not later be changed to a purpose that does not continue to provide the specified type of community benefit.
Variations limited to minor errors
- The variation power would be limited to correcting minor errors that do not significantly increase the area, length or purpose of the tenure.
Reasons and reporting
- After deciding, the Minister must notify the affected parties and provide reasons.
- The Minister must also report annually on the use of the powers where the land is subject to an Aboriginal land claim.

These changes were won because LALCs, members, communities, unions, supporters and parliamentary representatives stood together and refused to stay silent.

Thank you to every LALC and member who wrote to MPs, signed and shared the petition, contacted the media, attended meetings and informed their communities.

Without the strength and advocacy of the Network, this legislation would have been worse.

Our work does not end with the passage of this Bill.

NSWALC will closely monitor how the new laws are applied. When the time comes, we will test the legislation and challenge any government decision that unlawfully or unfairly affects Aboriginal land rights.

We will continue to defend the rights our Elders and land rights warriors fought to secure.

Social media assets are linked for LALCs and members to share: