Terms of Reference
The Terms of Reference provide comprehensive guidance on the Review and its parameters.
The Review will assess and make recommendations on the institutional arrangements, legislative and policy settings required to advance a multicultural Australia and meet the current and future needs of multicultural Australia at the Commonwealth level.
The Review will consider the diverse range of experiences in multicultural Australia, including Australians of migrant family backgrounds, people born overseas themselves or who have at least one parent born overseas, refugees and humanitarian entrants, and permanent and temporary visa holders.
The Review will assess and make recommendations on matters that address barriers to inclusion as well as those that enhance the social, cultural and economic strengths provided by Australia’s multicultural diversity. This will include the identification and application of benchmarks for measuring effectiveness where available.
The Review will also consider the gendered forms of prejudice and discrimination which may act as compounding barriers to social and economic inclusion.
The Review will be guided by three key principles:
- advancing a multicultural Australia
- supporting our cohesive and inclusive multicultural society
- ensuring settings are fit for purpose in harnessing the talents of all Australians
and will consider:
- the effectiveness of existing federal:
- legislative and regulatory frameworks and legal settings
- relevant policy settings and programs
- strategies to promote multiculturalism, social cohesion and inclusion, and
- services designed to support multicultural Australia
- how the above existing federal arrangements interact with state and local government settings, identifying potential areas of duplication and gaps, and opportunities for further inter-governmental collaboration
- roles and functions of government and non-government organisations respectively
- identifying areas for reform to address any systemic barriers that prevent people from multicultural communities from fully participating in Australian society, including those barriers that exist due to racism and discrimination
- the effectiveness of current federal diversity, equity and inclusion strategies, including for the promotion of people from CALD backgrounds into leadership roles
- how the Federal Government can more strategically communicate and engage multicultural Australia, including in languages other than English
- opportunities to define a modern shared Australian identity and strengthen public understanding of multiculturalism as a collective responsibility through education and public awareness raising.
The Review will have regard to, and complement, the findings or proceedings of previous and ongoing reviews or inquiries applicable to this topic as well as relevant research, including approaches in relevant overseas jurisdictions. This will include, but is not limited to, relevant work being undertaken through the:
- Australian Human Rights Commission’s National Anti-Racism Strategy
- Government's National Cultural Policy, Revive: a place for every story, a story for every place
- APS Cultural and Linguistic Diversity Strategy
- Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade References Committee Inquiry into Issues facing diaspora communities in Australia
- Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee Inquiry into Nationhood, national identity and democracy
- Government’s A Migration System for Australia’s Future review
- Reforms to address temporary migrant worker exploitation package
- Department of Home Affairs’ review into settlement services
- Rapid Review into the Exploitation of Australia’s Visa System
- Department of Home Affairs’ review into democratic resilience.
The Review will not consider:
- operational level policy, procedure or program settings or implementation
- immigration or visa processes, applications, timeframes, outcomes or review
- immigration compliance or border protection policies or operational settings.
The Review Panel will provide a final report with recommendations to the Commonwealth Government. They will identify potential areas for reform, action and further exploration. The Review will be finalised in March 2024.
