NSW [Crossbench Bill - Libertarian] Stronger Self-Defence Laws for People in Their Own Homes

Crimes Amendment (Defence of Dwellings and Other Premises) Bill 2025

Private Member's Bill

12 Nov 2025: MPs in the first house are debating whether this bill is a good idea in principle.

Legislative Council

Legislative Assembly

Assent

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Topics

criminal justice firearms prohibited weapons public safety self defence

Introduced by: John Ruddick MLC (LIBT)

Links to official parliament websites

Official page: progress through parliament

Official page: bill text and explanatory notes

Effects of this bill

If this bill passes, it means that:

Adults can now legally carry anti-personnel spray if they have no convictions for weapons offences and are not subject to an apprehended violence order.
People can use lethal force to defend their home or remove a criminal trespasser if the intruder is violent, is with another person, or threatens to damage the property. This also applies if the person believes the force is necessary to protect themselves, another person, or the home from damage.
The legal exemption for carrying anti-personnel spray will end 12 months after it starts.
Certain items are removed from the list of banned weapons under the laws governing prohibited weapons.

News articles and press releases

Crimes Amendment (Defence of Dwellings and Other Premises) Bill 2025

The Hon. JOHN RUDDICK — 2025-11-12

First, when an intruder violently breaks into your home—whether the householder lives in a freestanding house, a unit, a hotel room, or even a vehicle they call home—the law will stand with the resident and not the criminal. If a householder acts to protect themselves or another person from an intruder, they should not fear becoming the accused. The legal reforms present in the bill support the judgement of the resident to determine how much force must be used to eliminate the threat. Second, the bill modernises our self‑defence laws to recognise that ordinary people have the right to carry basic nonlethal means of protection, such as pepper spray, provided that they are over 18, have no criminal convictions and are not the subject of an apprehended violence order.