Counter-Terrorism Legislation Amendment Bill 2026 (Cth)
16 September 2026
On 8 September 2026, the Law Council made a submission to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security inquiry into the Counter-Terrorism Legislation Amendment Bill 2026 (Cth)
The Bill proposes to extend the sunset provisions for control orders, preventative detention orders, post-sentence orders and extraordinary police powers relating to terrorism by a further three years. It also proposes to increase reliance on control orders for post-sentence monitoring of persons convicted of terrorism related offences, extend the maximum duration of a control order applied to a child, broaden access to surveillance powers to support control order and post-sentence order applications, allow access to criminal history information where no conviction was recorded, and alter the process for de-listing a terrorist organisations.
The Law Council’s submission recommended allowing preventative detention orders and continuing detention orders under the post-sentence order framework to sunset, while reiterating long-held concerns with the broader control order framework.
Our submission focused on the risk that several proposals would adversely affect children, while acknowledging concerns that children make up an increasing proportion of the caseload of police and intelligence agencies investigating allegations of political violence. In doing so, the Law Council reiterated that laws designed to address offending by children must prioritise rehabilitation and reintegration alongside community safety.
The Law Council submission opposes extending the duration of control orders imposed on children, recommending that rehabilitation and reintegration be expressly included among the purposes of control order and post-sentence order regimes, supported by child-specific safeguards for surveillance and information sharing.
We have also recommended dedicated Commonwealth funding for legal assistance for all relevant orders, improved public reporting on control orders, tighter limits on the use of criminal history information (particularly where that information relates to children), and stronger justifications for expanded surveillance powers.
The submission was informed by contributions from the Law Society of New South Wales; the New South Wales Bar Association; the National Criminal Law Committee; the National Human Rights Committee; and the National Security Law Working Group.
Last Updated on 17/09/2026
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