Victorian Charter of Human Rights

Tuesday, 25 July 2006 (Melbourne): The Victorian Parliament passed the Victorian Charter of Rights and Responsiblities. The Charter will take legal effect from 1 January 2007. Victoria is the first Australian State to enact a Bill of Rights.

Tuesday, 20 December 2005 (Melbourne): The Attorney-General of Victoria, Mr Robb Hulls, announced that Victoria will introduce a Charter of Rights and Responsibilities. This will make Victoria the first Australian State to introduce a Bill of Rights (the ACT is a territory, not a State). The Victorian Charter will follow the UK and New Zealand models.

After a period of community consultation, the Victorian Human Rights Consulation Committee released its final report on its inquiry into whether Victoria should adopt a Bill of Rights.

CCL encourages Victorians to embrace a Bill of Rights

1 August 2005 (Sydney): The New South Wales Council for Civil Liberties today released its submission to the Victorian Human Rights Consulation Committee's inquiry into whether Victoria needs a Bill of Rights. CCL encourage the Victorian Parliament to be bold & to embrace a Bill of Rights model that would offer effective protection of the rights and freedoms of its citizens and theat would strengthen its democratic institutions.

Read CCL's submission (78K).

ACT Human Rights Act

Australia's First Bill of Rights

Tuesday, 2 March 2004 (Canberra): The Parliament of the Australian Capital Territory, a self-governing Australian territory, passed Australia's first Bill of Rights. The Human Rights Act 2004 (ACT) will help to protect such fundamental rights as freedom of expression, religion and movement.

Read the Human Rights Act 2004 (ACT).

Read the Chief Minister's media release.

Read what the Chief Justice of the ACT says about the Human Rights Act.

Read the report on community consultation about the Bill of Rights. (size: 546K)

Tasmania to consider Bill of Rights

9 February 2006 (Hobart): Tasmanian Attorney-General, Ms Judy Jackson, has announced that Tasmania will examine options for protecting human rights. One of those options involves legislating a Human Rights Act.

Ms Jackson has asked the Tasmanian Law Reform Institute to consult the public on the issue.

You can read CCL's submission to the inquiry into a Tasmanian Charter of Rights, which argues that Tasmania should examine the Canadian experience closely. In Canada they have a constitutionally-entrenched Charter of Rights which both respects parliamentary sovereignty and allows the courts to strike down legislation that violates the Charter.

Western Australia

In May 2007, the Western Australian Attorney-General, Jim McGinty, announced a community consultation on whether WA needs a Human Rights Act.

You can read more on the WA Human Rights Act website.

Queensland Rejects a Bill of Rights

In November 1998, the Queensland Legislative Assembly's Legal, Constitutional and Administrative Review Committee recommended against adopting a Bill of Rights to protect everyone in Queensland.

The full report was called: ‘The Preservation and Enhancement of Individuals’ Rights and Freedoms in Queensland: Should Queensland Adopt a Bill of Rights?’.