NSW Up to 10 Years Jail for Grooming, Recruiting, or Coercing Others into Violent Extremism

Crimes Amendment (Countering Violent Extremism) Bill 2026

Opposition Bill

18 Mar 2026: 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

child protection child safety criminal penalties grooming national security public safety recruitment violent extremism

Introduced by: Damien Tudehope MLC (LIB)

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:

it is a new criminal offence (up to 5 years imprisonment) to expose someone to violent extremist material or provide them financial benefits to induce them to commit political or ideological violence
it is a new criminal offence (up to 5 years) to recruit, procure, solicit or incite someone to carry out violent extremism
it is a new criminal offence (up to 7 years) to coerce, threaten or deceive someone into committing or assisting violent extremism
all three offences carry higher maximum penalties when an adult targets a child; adults who groom or recruit children for violent extremism face up to 7 years jail, and those who coerce, threaten, or deceive children face up to 10 years jail
convictions for the child-targeting aggravated offences are reportable conduct under the Children's Guardian Act -- the offender's employer may be notified
People covered by the Children's Guardian Act 2019 must report any conduct that involves grooming, recruiting, or coercing children for violent extremism
The Attorney-General must review these laws after two years. The Attorney-General must then give a report to both Houses of Parliament within six months of that review.

The Debate

What different members said when this bill was debated:

Stephen Lawrence ALP

“I contribute to debate to oppose the Crimes Amendment (Countering Violent Extremism) Bill 2026. I have a lot of respect for the Hon. Damien Tudehope as a lawyer and as a person, but I must say this proposed law is wild. It would change the way we police speech on some of the most controversial and divisive issues.”

Official source →

Sue Higginson GRN

“The Greens have serious concerns about the Crimes Amendment (Countering Violent Extremism) Bill 2026, although we support parts of it and believe it deserves due consideration from this place.”

Official source →

Chris Rath LIB

“I indicate my support for the Crimes Amendment (Countering Violent Extremism) Bill 2026, which has been brought to the House by the Hon. Damien Tudehope as the shadow Attorney General.”

Official source →

Mark Buttigieg ALP

“I contribute to debate on the Crimes Amendment (Countering Violent Extremism) Bill 2026. The Government is committed to tackling hatred and division in our community. Nobody could say that we have not taken urgent and consistent action to combat extremism in our State.”

Official source →

Cate Faehrmann GRN

“I make a brief contribution to echo and support the contribution made by my colleague Ms Sue Higginson, who has already outlined the substantial reasons why The Greens do not support the Crimes Amendment (Countering Violent Extremism) Bill 2026. I address two points that were raised in the debate.”

Official source →

News articles and press releases

Crimes Amendment (Countering Violent Extremism) Bill 2026

The Hon. DAMIEN TUDEHOPE — 2026-02-04

The Crimes Amendment (Countering Violent Extremism) Bill 2026 seeks to address some of the current gaps in the law in order to contribute to this needed response. The bill would define "violent extremism" to mean "an act of violence, or an act supporting the use of violence, to achieve social, political or legal outcomes, or in response to specified political or social grievances". This definition is used in Australia’sCounter-Terrorism and Violent Extremism Strategy 2025. It intentionally captures a broader range of activity than is covered by the definition of a "terrorist act".