Submission: Inquiry into the Human Rights Bill 2025

26 October 2026

Amnesty International Australia has made a submission to the Inquiry into the Human Rights Bill 2025.

This inquiry is a significant opportunity to correct the current gaps in NSW that are failing to prevent human rights abuses.

Today NSW has a system patchwork and piecemeal protections for human rights which means some human rights are protected but many are not. The Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 (NSW) only protects people's rights to live free from discrimination on the basis of certain protected attributes and in certain circumstances.

Human rights belong to each and every one of us.

A Human Rights Act would require public authorities to consider human rights when passing laws, making decisions about policies, and delivering services, and to act compatibly with human rights, thereby preventing human rights abuses. An Act will also enable everyone to challenge injustice and seek remedies if their rights are abused.

Amnesty Australia believes that a Human Rights Act is the most important action the NSW government can take to promote and protect human rights in NSW. An Act would protect all the rights of people in NSW and establish a framework that ensures that all people's rights are universal, indivisible, and can be realised.

Amnesty International is a global movement of more than 10 million people who take injustice personally. We are campaigning for a world where human rights are enjoyed by all - and we can only do it with your support.

Act now or learn more about our human rights work.