Agent TypeOrganisationActivities & OccupationsGovernment organisationsHistoryThe Australian Heritage Commission was one of a number of initiatives of the Whitlam Labour Government to increase government activity regarding cultural heritage. In his Policy Speech in November, 1972, the Federal Labour leader said that ...one overriding objective of a Labour Government would be 'to preserve and enhance the quality of the National Estate’. When the Labour Government came into office in December 1972, a Committee of Inquiry into the National Estate was set up, with terms of reference to report on the nature and state of the National Estate; the measures presently being adopted; the measures which should be adopted; the role which the Australian Government should play in the preservation and enhancement of the National Estate; the manner in which the National Trusts of Australia and other appropriate conservation groups could be supported by public funds and the amount required in order that these bodies could immediately increase their effectiveness, in arguing and working for the preservation and enhancement of the Nation Estate.
The Committee of Inquiry reported to Federal Parliament in August 1974 that ...uncontrolled development, economic growth and 'progress' to that time had had a very detrimental effect on Australia's national estate... and called for ...prompt action and public education to prevent further neglect and destruction.
An Interim Committee on the National Estate was formed in August 1974 to continue the work of the Inquiry and begin to develop a national policy for the National Estate, based on UNESCOs Committee for the Protection of World Cultural and National Heritage, which spoke of an ‘International Estate’. The Australian Heritage Commission Act 1975 was assented to on 19 June 1975 as a statutory authority, responsible to the Commonwealth Minister for the Environment, Sport and Territories. The AHC had wide scope, covering natural, indigenous and historical heritage. Commissioners meet four to six times a year, and with the part-time Chairman and six part-time Commissioners being chosen for their skills and interest in the natural and cultural environment. The AHC was chaired by Professor David Yencken who was instrumental in its establishment.
Formed just as the Fraser Liberal-Country coalition government came into power, the AHC came under criticism from mining and development lobbies, and the Commonwealth Government itself over issues such as the Ranger Uranium Mine in Kakadu, and the Gordon-below-Franklin dam proposal which had been placed on the World Heritage List in 1983.
The Australian Heritage Commission was ultimately abolished under the Howard Liberal-National coalition government and the Australian Heritage Council formed in its place on 19 February 2004
Source
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_Heritage_Commission
Australian Heritage Commission (1974-2004). University of Melbourne Archives, accessed 12/03/2026, https://archives.library.unimelb.edu.au/nodes/view/58075
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