2 June 2017

, Minister for Environment and Parks

Historic moment for Aboriginal Heritage Legislation

I am very pleased the Aboriginal Relics Amendment Bill 2016 and the Aboriginal Relics (Consequential Amendments) Bill has yesterday passed both houses of Parliament.

In 2015 the Government committed to resetting our relationship with the Tasmanian Aboriginal people and this legislation is a demonstration of the significant progress we have made.

The passing of legislation is a significant achievement after considerable consultation with the Aboriginal people and other key stakeholders.

This legislation is important for protecting our rich Aboriginal heritage and addresses:

• changing the name of the Act to the “Aboriginal Heritage Act”;
• removing reference to 1876 as being a “cut-off” point for what is considered as Aboriginal heritage;
• increasing penalties for damage to Aboriginal heritage to be in line with the penalties for damage to non-Aboriginal heritage;
• introducing scaled offences, in association with the removal of the ignorance defence and removal of the 6-month time limit for prosecuting offences;
• establishing a statutory Aboriginal Heritage Council of Aboriginal people to advise the Minister; and
• setting a statutory timeline for a further review of the Act.

The Legislation addresses areas of immediate concern now, while recognising there will need to be further ongoing engagement with the Aboriginal people and the broader community to resolve other outstanding issues with the Act. That is why the Bill includes a statutory review after three years.

It’s timely to thank all those who have worked so diligently to see this process through, including Aboriginal people and the Department.

The additional protections this Bill provides for our rich Aboriginal heritage demonstrates our deep respect for Tasmania’s First People and their history.

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