Legal doubt over ACT's power to cancel non-compliant Crown leases

Serious legal doubt has been cast over the ACT government’s power to cancel leases for non-compliance, Canberra Times reported on 1 November 2026, after legal advice found the territory’s planning laws do not set out “just terms” compensation, risking any cancellation being found constitutionally invalid. The finding emerged from Access Canberra’s handling of the derelict Big Splash waterpark site, where officials concluded they could not terminate the Crown lease despite having issued a formal notice of intention to do so.

Why it matters

ACT land is leasehold, not freehold, so the Territory’s ability to enforce lease conditions, including cancelling a Crown lease for non-compliance, is one of its main levers over landowners who breach their terms. The Big Splash case shows that lever may not work as intended. Access Canberra issued a notice of intention to terminate the lease, and the lessee responded indicating an intention to comply, but further analysis found the laws lack a “just terms” compensation mechanism, an absence that risks any termination being ruled constitutionally invalid. For any Canberra landowner or developer holding a Crown lease with conditions attached, including development or use requirements, the finding raises a real question about how enforceable those conditions are if challenged. New Crown leases keep being issued regardless, including the Suburban Land Agency’s recent Watson section 76 release, underscoring the gap between how easily leasehold land changes hands and how hard it is to claw back.

The numbers

The Big Splash site in Canberra’s north has sat closed to the public since March 2023, Canberra Times reported. Planning Minister Chris Steel told the assembly that Access Canberra’s advice to him was blunt: the territory’s planning laws gave it no path to cancel the Crown lease, since those laws carry no “just terms” compensation requirement. The ACT government has commissioned its own study into future options for the site, which remains for sale, according to the report. No cost, timeframe or sale price was stated.

What’s next

No legislative fix, or timeframe for one, was confirmed in the reporting, and it was not stated whether the ACT government intends to amend the planning laws to add a compensation mechanism for lease cancellations. The Big Splash lease remains in its current standing: Access Canberra has not terminated it, and the site remains listed for sale while the government’s study proceeds. Other ACT Crown lessees facing non-compliance notices will be watching whether the ACT government or EPSDD moves to close the “just terms” gap this case has exposed.