Strengthened compliance laws to better protect our heritage have now commenced

People who damage heritage places and objects in Canberra will face stronger penalties and may be required to repair damage in recently debated and passed Heritage legislation amendments.

The Canberra community is passionate about our shared heritage and has been calling for more effective ways to deal with breaches of the Heritage Act.

The amendments mean the ACT Government and the ACT Heritage Council now have increased abilities to respond appropriately when a heritage place or object is damaged. In particular the Council may now issue a repair damage direction for damaged heritage places and objects, if they can be repaired.

The ACT Government has also introduced an infringement notice scheme where compliance officers can issue an immediate $1,000 fine to an individual and $5,000 to a corporation for damage to a heritage place, regardless of whether it can be repaired.

See more about the strengthened heritage compliance laws and how heritage is protected in the ACT at:https://www.environment.act.gov.au/heritag