A Human Rights Act will protect our right to housing

A Human Rights Act will help to create a fair, just and equal society for everyone. When human rights are protected by law they help to ensure that we are all treated fairly, and with dignity, equality and respect.

A Human Rights Act for NSW could explicitly protect our right to adequate housing. It could also protect rights that help us secure housing or stay in our home. Human rights like the right to privacy and family, the rights of children, the right to property or to equality before the law, have all been used to protect people’s right to housing in places with a Human Rights Act.

The case studies below provide examples of how human rights legislation in other places has assisted people to secure a place to call home.

Right to property

A Victorian man suffering from physical disabilities and limited mobility continued to live in his family home after his mother had been admitted to an elderly care unit and placed under a financial administration order. In order to prevent the home being sold, the man’s advocate raised the right to property under the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act. In consideration of this right an agreement was reached so that the man could continue living in the house as a tenant paying rent.

Source: Disability Justice Advocacy, Submission for Review of the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006

Right to be free from inhuman and degrading treatment

A pregnant woman was living in government housing in the UK. She was issued a notice to leave the property while she was giving birth in hospital. The woman was a single parent and she was giving birth to her second child. A worker at a community organisation that was providing support to the woman helped to prevent the eviction by arguing that evicting the family in these circumstances would breach their right not to be treated in an inhuman and degrading way – a right that is protected in the UK’s Human Rights Act.

Source: BIHR, Preventing a Woman and her Newborn Baby Being Made Homeless https://www.bihr.org.uk/Pages/FAQs/Category/case-studies

Rights of young carers

Following the death of her father and incarceration of her mother, a 23 year old woman became the guardian of her three younger siblings. She maintained their public housing tenancy and had rental payments deducted from her Youth Allowance payments. She went overseas on a study tour and her Youth Allowance was cancelled causing her to accrue significant rental arrears that she didn’t receive notice of. The Victorian Department of Housing applied for a possession order after having issued a notice to vacate.

The woman’s advocates argued that the Department had failed to consider the rights of the young woman and her siblings protected in the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act. Instead of making a possession order, the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal made an order that the young woman pay $10 per week towards her rental arrears in addition to her rent.

Source: Homeless Persons’ Legal Clinic, Submission to the Review of the Victorian Charter, 2011

Right to equality before the law

A Victorian woman was served with a notice to immediately vacate her property because of allegations of violence and drug dealing. The landlord had not discussed the allegations with the woman – instead relying on information provided to him by other people. Advocates argued that making these assumptions engaged the right to recognition and equality before the law – a right protected in the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act. As a result the notice to vacate was withdrawn due to the lack of evidence relating to the allegations that had been made in the notice.

Source: Council to Homeless Persons Submission to the 8 year review of the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act (2006).

Right to accessible housing

After an Aboriginal woman with a disability, and her three children, were forced to vacate their social housing, the woman lodged a complaint regarding the length of time taken to arrange modifications to ensure she could shower and access the kitchen safely. The social housing provider settled the complaint by providing a financial sum and expressing their regret in the delay. The woman and her children were offered services and assistance to apply for safe and accessible accommodation.

Source: The First Annual Report on the Operation of Queensland’s Human Rights Act 2019-20, p. 137.

Right to privacy

A Victorian woman was living in housing owned by a community housing provider. The housing provider had obtained a possession order from the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal because of their concerns about the cluttering of personal items at the property.

The woman had previously told the housing provider that the cluttering was a symptom of her mental illness – an illness that she was receiving medical treatment for. The woman’s advocate argued that as a provider of low-cost housing to vulnerable tenants on behalf of the Victorian government, the community housing provider was required to act consistently with the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act and, in particular, they were required to give proper consideration to the woman’s right to privacy. As a result of the negotiations, the woman was allowed to stay at the property.

Source: VEOHRC, 2014 Report on the Operation of the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities (p 41)

Rights to property, privacy and family

The Ministry of Housing tried to evict a single mother from public housing after it was found that her boyfriend was growing marijuana on the premises. The Ministry of Housing refused requests to reconsider the eviction notice. The mother applied to the Tribunal but lost her case. She then appealed to the Supreme Court and won. The Court ruled that the Ministry must reconsider its decision taking into account the Victorian Charter. In particular, the Ministry had to consider the mother’s right to property, right to privacy and right to family life. As a result, the Ministry withdrew the eviction notice.

Source: Michael Pearce SC, Submission to the Review of the Victorian Charter, 2011

Right to protection from arbitrary interference

Three long-term public housing tenants in the ACT were told they would be relocated from their homes as part of the government’s public housing renewal program, despite having lived there for between approximately 27 and 42 years. The tenants argued that the decisions had been made without properly consulting them or considering their personal circumstances. Their advocates relied on the Human Rights Act 2004 (ACT), raising a number of relevant rights, including the right to protection from arbitrary interference with their homes, as well as the impacts on their family and cultural connections.

Under the Human Rights Act 2004 (ACT), public authorities must act in a way that is compatible with human rights and must give proper consideration to those rights when making decisions. The ACT Supreme Court found that the ACT Commissioner for Social Housing had denied the tenants procedural fairness and failed to properly consider their human rights before making the relocation decisions, including their right to protection from arbitrary interference with their homes. As a result, the decisions were set aside.

This outcome shows how a Human Rights Act requires government officials to give genuine and meaningful consideration to human rights in decision-making, particularly where decisions have serious impacts on people’s homes, lives and communities - like taking away the place they call home.

Source: Hubzin; Van Loo; Irwin v Commissioner for Social Housing [2026] ACTSC 11

Right to privacy and protection from arbitrary interference

Several people experiencing homelessness were living in tents in public parks in the City of Moreton Bay. The council removed them and disposed of their belongings without properly considering their circumstances or giving them a real opportunity to find alternative accommodation. Their advocates relied on the Human Rights Act 2019 (Qld), raising specific rights including the right to privacy (s 25), which protects against unlawful or arbitrary interference with a person’s home, as well as property rights (s 24) and equality before the law (s 15). They argued that, for people sleeping rough, tents can constitute a “home”.

Under the Act, public authorities must act compatibly with human rights and properly consider those rights when making decisions. The Supreme Court of Queensland found that the council failed to do this, including failing to properly consider these rights before carrying out the evictions. This outcome shows that public authorities, like local councils, must give genuine and meaningful consideration to human rights before moving people on.

Source: Bobeldyk v Moreton Bay City Council; Eichin & Ors v Moreton Bay City Council [2026] QSC 27

Which rights?

These case studies show how Australian Human Rights Acts help bring international human rights standards into everyday government decision-making. Many of the rights raised reflect rights Australia has already accepted under international law, including the right to an adequate standard of living under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), which expressly includes the right to adequate housing. They also reflect protections under the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), including rights relating to family, culture, equality and dignity.

The ACT has recently strengthened its Human Rights Act by introducing a standalone right to adequate housing, drawn from international human rights law. While this right has long existed as part of the broader right to an adequate standard of living under the ICESCR, its inclusion in domestic legislation makes it directly relevant to government decision-making and strengthens accountability in areas such as housing, homelessness and public housing policy.  

In order for these rights to be enforceable in New South Wales they need to be protected in a Human Rights Act for New South Wales.