Burglary without borders

In March 2019, a new expanded form of burglary was added to the Crimes Act. While ordinary burglary requires entry into “a building or ship” (s 231), the new offence of burglary may now be committed by entering “any land used for agricultural purposes” (s 231A). The same penalty of imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years applies to both s 231 and s 231A. This is the latest in a long series of expansions of the elements of the burglary offence. This article explores the history of burglary, tracking the long journey from the “paradigm” case of housebreaking to the range of ways in which the offence can now be committed. In addition to exploring the rationale and effects of these amendments, we interrogate this trend in a more theoretical light. In particular, we try to identify the distinct “wrongness” of burglary – what it is that merits treating burglary more seriously than other forms of property crime other than those involving violence? Having sought to understand what is distinctly wrong with burglary, we offer an analysis as to whether the expansion of the concept has gone too far.