This Government bill amends the Anzac Day Act 1966 so that it covers other conflicts and people who have served New Zealand in war or warlike conflicts, past and future, not currently covered by the Act. It was enacted as the Anzac Day Amendment Act 2026.
A Government bill updating the Anzac Day Act 1966, the law that sets the meaning and observance of Anzac Day. It modernises and broadens who is formally commemorated. The current Act refers mainly to those who died for New Zealand and the British Empire or Commonwealth; the bill widens recognition to reflect modern service — for example personnel who died on United Nations peacekeeping and other operations, those who died in military training, and civilians who served in war or warlike conflicts — and updates dated language. It changes how the day of remembrance is defined, not the date or public holiday.
Origin: a Government bill developed with the Ministry for Culture and Heritage and Veterans' Affairs. Argument for: commemoration should keep pace with the changing nature of service so peacekeepers, trainees and civilians are properly honoured, and archaic wording removed. Argument against: some submitters argue it still leaves out groups such as those who died in the New Zealand Wars, or that the change is largely symbolic, while others prefer the traditional wording be left unchanged.
See the Parliament.nz ↗ site for the full bill.