Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Bill Introduced in NSW Parliament

24 June, 2022

24 June 2022

The NSW Aboriginal Land Council (NSWALC) would like to inform the Land Rights Network that the Aboriginal Cultural Heritage (Culture is Identity) Bill 2022 (the Bill) has now been introduced in NSW Parliament. Reverend the Hon. Fred Nile MLC read the Bill in the Legislative Council on Wednesday 22 June.

As per NSWALC’s previous Network Message on 16 June, this Bill represents a substantial improvement on current laws, largely incorporates NSWALC’s long-standing key reform principles and is an opportunity for long over-due and meaningful changes to Cultural Heritage legislation.

The Bill is designed to better protect and support Aboriginal Cultural Heritage (ACH). A summary of the Bill is available here. 

NSWALC is urging all political parties to support the Bill and continues to advocate for Aboriginal Cultural Heritage reforms to be urgently supported and resourced by the NSW Government.

The next steps:

  1. The Bill is due to be debated by the NSW Parliament in the coming months
  2. If the Bill is supported in the Legislative Council (Upper House), it will progress to the Legislative Assembly (Lower House) for consideration,
  3. If the Bill is agreed to (passes both Houses) it will be sent to the Governor for assent. As currently drafted, the Bill is due to commence 1 July 2023

NSWALC urges the Network to familiarise yourself with the Bill, which is available online here.

Reverend Fred Nile’s second reading speech is available online here.

NSWALC encourages you to speak with your local Member of Parliament about the importance of Aboriginal Cultural Heritage reforms in NSW.

If you have questions, please contact your NSWALC Councillor or NSWALC Strategy and Policy Unit on policy@alc.org.au.

Acknowledgement

We pay our respects to the Traditional Owners of the lands where we work as well as across the lands we travel through. We also acknowledge our Elders past, present and emerging.

Artwork Credit: Craig Cromelin, from a painting he did titled, "4 favourite fishing holes". It is a snippet of his growing years on the Lachlan River, featuring yabby, turtle, fish and family.

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