[23] Opinion polls published by The Bulletin during that era suggested that while a majority of Queenslanders did not support equal rights for gay people, they thought that private homosexual conduct between consenting adults should be decriminalised.

[40] The committee recommend the bill be passed in full by the parliament, finding that the existing law was "particularly discriminatory to same-sex attracted young men and could inhibit their ability to receive advice on sexual health", and that it denied "peer acceptance and community support" to gay and bisexual youth.

[4] In 2012 the Australian Senate passed a motion[46] recommending that all states and territories "enact legislation that expressly purges convictions imposed on people prior to the decriminalisation of homosexual conduct".

[15] No action was taken until the election of the Palaszczuk Labor government, which announced in January 2016 that it had referred to the Queensland Law Reform Commission (QLRC) the issue of expunging historical consensual homosexual sex crimes.

They were temporarily downgraded to "registered partnerships" under the short-lived government of Campbell Newman and his Liberal National Party, before being reinstated by the returned Labor administration of Annastacia Palaszczuk in 2016.

[66][67] The Queensland Government first offered limited recognition to same-sex couples in 1999, focussing on three areas of law – property division, domestic violence protection orders and employment leave.

[68][70] Since the 2002 amendments, same-sex partners are now recognised in over 60 pieces of state legislation, including superannuation entitlements, workers compensation, the distribution of property in the event of a separation and state-based parental, family, bereavement and carer's leave provisions, among others.

[73][74] Subsequent changes by the Newman LNP Government watered down civil partnerships, replacing them with "registered relationships" and eliminating official ceremonies from June 2012 onwards.

[90][91] Katter's Australian Party proposed a full repeal of the civil partnership law, and were criticised for a homophobic advertisement attacking Campbell Newman for his personal support for same-sex marriage.

[92] Before the LNP took office, party leader Campbell Newman stated that repealing the laws after couples had already entered into civil partnerships would create an "unacceptable and intolerable situation", and so promised to do nothing.

[93][94] On 12 June 2012, Premier Newman and Attorney-General Jarrod Bleijie announced that the legislation would be amended to remove aspects that "mimicked marriage", such as the option of an official ceremony, to avoid offending conservative religious groups.

Following the return of the Labor Party to power in 2015, Communities Minister Shannon Fentiman suggested that the exclusion of same-sex couples from Queensland's adoption laws was out of step with contemporary standards and most other Australian states and territories.

[185] Education Minister John-Paul Langbroek noted there were "contentious views associated with gender diverse and same-sex attracted students", including opposition to recognising LGBT issues in schooling.

[185] The draft policy statement had encouraged state schools to have coeducational sporting teams, gender neutral uniforms and consider scheduling physical education classes to cut down on the number of clothes changes required.

[196] This case, followed by another attempt to use the defence in the nearby bashing death of hitchhiker Stephen Ward six months later, led local priest Father Paul Kelly to launch a Change.org petition to remove its application from Queensland law.

[201] A number of celebrities subsequently voiced their support for the abolition of the homosexual advance defence by the year's end, including Tom Ballard, Benjamin Law, Josh Thomas, Rove McManus, Missy Higgins and Faustina Agolley.

[204] A number of submissions were received in response to the proposal, including opposition from the Australian Christian Lobby who alleged that removing the "unwanted sexual advance" defence would discriminate against women who were groped.

[207] The concern regarding the lack of a definition as to what constitutes an "exceptional character" in a defence of provocation was discussed, with the committee recommending that the proposals in Clause 10 be reviewed in five years to establish whether they had operated as intended.

[209][210] Attorney-General Yvette D'Ath stated following the bill's passage that the reform would mean that "an unwanted sexual advance, even one that involves minor touching, cannot be enough, other than in circumstances in an exceptional character, to reduce criminal responsibility for killing a person with murderous intent."

Ms D'Ath argued that it would be "impossible for the legislature to identify the infinite circumstances that may arise in a homicide case" and so left the term undefined, though insisted the parliament's clear intention was that it would not include "unwanted homosexual advances".

[211] In October 2023, a bill was passed and assented[212] to implement "extensive, strong and broad based" hate crime and vilification legislation applying within Queensland - to explicitly include sexual orientation, gender identity and/or sex characteristics.

[217][218] Queensland effective since 20 August 2020, became the first jurisdiction within Australia to legally ban conversion therapy for sexual orientation or gender identity – with a maximum penalty of 18 months imprisonment and fines.

[5][219][220] Health practitioners face fines and up to 18 months imprisonment for "conditioning techniques such as aversion therapy, psychoanalysis and hypnotherapy, clinical interventions, including counselling, or group activities that aim to change or suppress a person's sexual orientation or gender identity".

[221][222][223] The ban was criticised by the organisations SOGICE Survivors, Brave Network and PFLAG (parents and friends of lesbians and gays) for only focusing on healthcare professionals, when the practice often occurs in other settings – such as within religious organizations.

[231][232] The coverage of local newspaper the Courier Mail, which initially referred to her as a "she-male", mentioned her prostitution career and featured photos of her posing in a bikini, drew widespread condemnation for its transphobia, sensationalism and victim-blaming.

The organisation has run various HIV/AIDS prevention programs since that time, including a controversial "Rip and Roll" safe sex billboard campaign showing two clothed men embracing while holding a condom packet.

[250] Springborg subsequently replaced the ministerial advisory committee with a new body, HIV Foundation Queensland, on World AIDS Day, 1 December 2013 to advise the state government on HIV/AIDS strategy and facilitate research.

[251] The government also justified equalising the age of consent for all forms of sexual activity at 16, to encourage younger Queenslanders to obtain health services without the fear of being criminalised.

[13] Queensland's top ten gay suburbs are New Farm, Fortitude Valley, Teneriffe, Nundah, Coorparoo, Surfers Paradise, Moorooka, West End, Southport and Clayfield.

[226] LGBTI support is strongest in south-east Queensland and particularly Brisbane, where it mirrors national trends, but it is weakest in the state's rural and regional areas to the north and west.