Why the battle for NSW bowlos and surf clubs just got bigger

The Minns government is facing a major battle with Aboriginal councils as it overhauls the management of land claims after a series of high-profile disputes, including a High Court ruling on an abandoned bowling club which was handed to an eastern suburbs Indigenous group.

The Labor government will introduce new laws to parliament on Tuesday to change how Crown reserves are managed, a move the NSW Aboriginal Land Council says is the biggest assault on land rights in 40 years.

Under NSW law, land cannot be claimed if it is lawfully used or occupied, however under the changes, a lease alone would automatically make land “lawfully used”.

The changes will make it more difficult for Aboriginal councils to make successful claims over land used by community and sporting groups, including Surf Life Saving clubs and sporting clubs, with the government insisting that administrative errors or typos on leases have left clubs vulnerable.

However, the changes could also end claims over unused land if they are subject to a lease, prompting concerns that developers could land bank.

The peak Aboriginal land group, representing 121 councils across NSW, says the government’s changes could impact at least 3000 parcels of land across the state, prompting it to call an urgent meeting on Monday to devise a plan to urge the government to dump its laws.

NSW government figures show more than 42,000 Aboriginal land claims remain unresolved statewide, some dating back to the 1980s.

The High Court last year ruled in favour of La Perouse Local Aboriginal Land Council in its claim over disputed land in Paddington. Three of the five justices on the bench agreed the land, which had housed the abandoned Paddington Bowling Club, was not “in use” by the leaseholder Quarry Street Pty Ltd.

Aboriginal land councils in NSW have had the right to claim “unused” Crown land for more than 40 years, but high-profile disputes about the definition of “unused” has prompted the changes.

The Waverton Bowling Club site was transferred to the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council in 2022 following a successful Land and Environment Court challenge against the NSW government, which had argued the land was not claimable.

The land council is also waiting on Federal Court determinations for two other sites handed over in 2022: the historic Yasmar Estate in Ashfield and land within Talus Street Reserve in Naremburn, including its tennis courts.

NSW Aboriginal Land Council chair Raymond Kelly said Indigenous leaders needed to take “decisive action against the hollowing out of land rights”.

“When Premier Neville Wran introduced the only land restitution framework in Australia in 1983, I am sure he didn’t think that a Labor government would be killing it in 2026,” Kelly said.

“This impacts more than just our people. It impacts the entire NSW public. These changes would prioritise private commercial interests over community use of land. The Aboriginal Land Rights Act is the result of decades of advocacy by our people.”

Minister for Lands Steve Kamper said it was clear “our Aboriginal land claims system is broken” and the proposed changes would address “edge cases” that become claimable due to technical non-compliance, such as an invalid sub-lease.

“These sites are well utilised by the local community. They were never intended to be claimable in the spirit of the act,” Kamper said.

Kamper said the Talus Street Reserve tennis courts were frequently used by the community, but an “invalid sublease” meant the site was technically non-compliant and therefore claimable.

“The Cronulla Marina land claim is currently before the courts. The operators have invested millions into the site to deliver the amenity the community needs. They are currently at risk of losing the site due to technical non-compliance,” Kamper said.

“The Matraville Fire Station is currently under a claim by the local Aboriginal land council. This is a vital piece of community infrastructure, not unused Crown land.”

However, Sydney MP Alex Greenwich said two lines in the proposed bill would “wipe out thousands of Aboriginal land claims” and is “one of the greatest assaults on the Aboriginal Land Rights Act that the parliament has ever seen”.

“In a housing crisis, this bill prioritises land banking over land rights as landholders won’t need to activate or develop their land; they can just sit on the asset and have the value grow,” Greenwich said.

“The Aboriginal Land Rights Act allows for land negotiation processes to facilitate housing for everyone. That should be the focus here, not locking up thousands of parcels of land from any use whatsoever for the duration of the lease.”

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.