The ACT Government will introduce legislation in December to strengthen vilification laws, expand prohibitions on Nazi symbols and gestures, and ensure hate motivation is expressly considered when offenders are sentenced.
The Hate Crime and Vilification Legislation Amendment Bill 2026 will give effect to the central legislative recommendations of the final report of the Hate Crime and Vilification Review, tabled in the Legislative Assembly today.
The Review examined the adequacy of the Territory's civil and criminal laws, enforcement mechanisms and support systems relating to hate speech, vilification and hate-motivated conduct.
It found that the ACT already has one of Australia's broadest civil vilification frameworks and is the only Australian jurisdiction with a positive duty to eliminate unlawful vilification.
The Review makes nine recommendations to further strengthen legal protections, improve public information and referral pathways, and make existing protections easier to understand and access.
The Bill will:
- clarify that civil and criminal vilification protections apply when a person is targeted because of a protected attribute they are perceived to have, regardless of whether that perception is correct
- simplify the serious vilification offence and increase its maximum penalty to include imprisonment
- expand the existing prohibition on Nazi symbols to include the Nazi salute and the Nazi double-sig rune, commonly known as SS bolts
- require courts to consider hate motivation towards a relevant protected attribute when sentencing an offender.
The Government will also undertake further consultation on the design of a proposed offence concerning the use of false or misleading representations to lure people into homophobic and other prejudiced-motivated attacks.
Targeted consultation for the Review was undertaken between February and March 2026, with around 100 stakeholders invited to participate and 26 written submissions received.
Stakeholders reported rising hate speech and prejudice-motivated conduct affecting religious and multicultural communities, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, people with disability and LGBTIQA+ communities.
They also identified substantial under-reporting, with barriers including limited awareness of legal rights and reporting pathways, fear of retaliation, language and accessibility challenges, mistrust of institutions, procedural complexity and concern about re-traumatisation.
The Government will work with ACT Policing and the ACT Human Rights Commission to improve public information and referral pathways and will consider developing accessible materials for communities affected by hate speech and vilification.
The Bill is scheduled to be introduced into the Legislative Assembly in December 2026, delivering on the Government's election commitment to review and strengthen the ACT's hate crime and serious vilification laws.
Quotes attributable to Chief Minister Andrew Barr:
"Canberra is at its best when everyone feels safe, respected and included.
"These reforms deliver on our election commitment to strengthen protections against hate and vilification and respond directly to what communities have told us.
"Nobody should be targeted because of who they are. When hatred is used to intimidate or harm others, the law must respond clearly and strongly, and these reforms ensure it does."
Quotes attributable to Attorney-General Tara Cheyne:
"The Review provides a clear and practical pathway for targeted reform, building on the ACT's already strong framework of civil and criminal protections.
"Every Canberran should be able to live openly and safely, without fear of being targeted for who they are. Antisemitism, Islamophobia, racism, ableism and anti-LGBTIQA+ hatred undermine the safety and cohesion of our whole community.
"We have consistently countered hate with practical action. Strengthening protections and clear, effective laws are essential to supporting this response."
Quote attributable to the Minister for Multicultural Affairs Michael Pettersson:
"Canberra's diverse multicultural communities deserve to enjoy the same sense of safety, dignity and respect as any other Canberran. We are all equal members of this community.
"There is no purpose to hate speech or hate symbols other than to undermine this equality."
Quotes attributable to Minister for Human Rights Caitlin Tough:
"Freedom of expression and robust public debate are fundamental to our democracy. Those freedoms are not inconsistent with appropriately targeted laws responding to conduct that threatens harm or incites hatred because of a person's protected attribute.
"The task is to ensure our laws protect people from serious harm while remaining necessary, targeted and proportionate.
"Legal protections must also be accessible in practice. People need to understand their rights, know where to seek help and have confidence that they will be referred to the pathway best suited to their circumstances."
