Rainbow Labor Queensland Policy

The Queensland branch of the Australian Labor Party recognises the unique position of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans*, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) community. We are cognisant of the challenges and difficulties associated with being a member of a sexual and gender minority, and we commit to treating the LGBTIQ community fairly and equally. We also recognise our LGBTIQ First Peoples, their Elders and acknowledge their contribution to Indigenous culture and history.

The Australian Labor Party has a proud history of standing up for the rights of minorities and those in our society who are less well off. The 2014 Platform of the Australian Labor Party (Queensland Branch) reinforces what we stand for as a party by proudly stating that:

“We value every member of our society – no matter their location, race, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, sexual identity, ability or educational qualification. We believe in and work to achieve a society that supports equality, acceptance and inclusion and a society that shuns discrimination. We believe firmly in social justice.” 1

We accept as self-evident the proposition that LGBTIQ rights are human rights. We respect the dignity and worth of everyone in society, including those of a sexual or gender minority.

Labor in Government will:
- ensure that it adheres to the Labor principles of fairness, justice and respect by working to end all forms of discrimination against members of the LGBTIQ community, wherever they live in Queensland
- recognise its role as a representative of the LGBTIQ community, a substantial proportion of its constituent base, by working to end disadvantage, which unfortunately acts as an ongoing threat to social cohesion
- work to reduce the harm being caused to the LGBTIQ community by addressing negative health trends that were exacerbated by the previous conservative governments
- ensure that government policies and legislation are applied logically, consistently and evenly to the LGBTIQ community as they are to the broader community so that Labor does not itself become a source of discrimination
- extend the Labor party’s approach to strengthening protections for workers in the workplace to strengthening societal protections to members of the LGBTIQ community.

Mental illness prevention has been amongst the most neglected areas of public policy, and particularly so under the former LNP administration in Queensland.

The LGBTIQ community suffers disproportionately from mental health issues, for while most LGBTIQ Queenslanders live healthy and happy lives, a disproportionate number experience poorer health outcomes than their non-LGBTIQ peers in a range of areas, including suicidality.7 These disproportionately poor outcomes are found in all age groups of LGBTIQ people and are a direct result of discrimination (real or perceived), bullying and invisibility.

41% of LGBTIQ people have had a mental disorder in the past 12 months, compared to an incidence rate of 20% in the heterosexual community. It was also found that there were significantly higher rates of anxiety, affective, and substance-use disorders among non-heterosexuals compared with heterosexual Australians.8

At least 36.2% of trans* and 24.4% of gay, lesbian and bisexual Australians met the criteria for experiencing a major depressive episode in 2005, compared with 6.8% of the general population.9

Same-sex attracted Australians have up to 14 times higher rates of suicide attempts than their heterosexual peers.10

LGBTIQ youth in particular are not only badly affected, but unfortunately largely ignored in terms of specific mental illness prevention initiatives. The pressures associated with “coming out”, bullying, the lack of family and friends support and social acceptance means that LGBTIQ youth are subject to significant negative mental and physical health impacts.

87% of transgender people have experienced stigma or discrimination on the basis of their gender identity.11
The First Australian National Trans Mental Health Study found that trans* people experience very high levels of mental health problems, particularly depression and anxiety syndromes. At the time they completed the questionnaire, 43.7% of the sample were currently experiencing clinically relevant depressive symptoms; 28.8% met the criteria for a current major depressive syndrome; 5.4% for another depressive syndrome; 18.3% for a panic syndrome; and 16.9% for another anxiety syndrome. One in 5 participants (20.9%) reported thoughts of suicidal ideation or self-harm on at least half of the days in the 2 weeks preceding the survey.12

Labor in Government will:

“...provide accessible, culturally appropriate mental illness prevention, early detection and intervention services, and recovery orientated support services across all communities including regional, rural and remote, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, LGBTIQ people, those living without carer support, the homeless and those held in custody. Young, vulnerable people at high risk of self-harm require our particular attention. Here the model will be for stepped care that includes self-help, peer-based and online services integrated with existing Tier 1 to Tier 3 treatment services through clear treatment pathways, and provided by a mental health workforce of clinical staff and staff with lived experience of mental illness.” 13

Labor will make it a requirement for access to Department of Health funding contracts that existing public and community service providers deliver inclusive and appropriate services for LGBTIQ people experiencing mental illness (in the same way that Culturally and Linguistically Diverse peoples and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are now).

Labor will make programs based on reparative (conversion) therapy for LGBTIQ people illegal in Queensland. The misguided notion that sexual or gender orientation can be “converted” or changed is not supported by empirical evidence and only leads to mental and physical anguish.

Labor will work with the LGBTIQ community and relevant mental health professionals to develop programs aimed at improving the mental health, social connectedness and resilience of the LGBTIQ community, including LGBTIQ youth and LGBTIQ elders

The legal system has not always responded to the needs of the LGBTIQ community. Indeed, our laws have often directly and indirectly discriminated against persons on the basis of their sexual or gender identity.

“Labor is committed to a strong and independent legal system that respects and promotes the following principles:
• the rule of law including the right to be treated equally before the law and the rights to due process and a fair trial
• an independent, open and accessible judicial system
• the right to liberty and security
• freedom of thought, conscience and liberty
• freedom of speech and expression subject to reasonable restrictions required to protect the reputation of others or to protect national security, public order, public health or public morality
• freedom of association
• the right to protection from unlawful discrimination and harassment including on the grounds of gender, race, religion, age, disability and sexual orientation.” 17

Of all the legal issues facing LGBTIQ Queenslanders, the on-going embarrassing anomaly of being the only Australian State/Territory with age of consent laws that differentiate between heterosexuals and homosexuals is a key issue that must be addressed with urgency. Changes to the law regarding age of consent must be an immediate priority for Labor.

At the moment the age of consent for anal intercourse is set at 18 whilst vaginal intercourse is legal at 16 years. Apart from the fact that an increasing number of heterosexuals practice anal intercourse, the difference in the law means that education of young gay men about safe sex could potentially be seen as illegal and problematic for any school or teacher who wanted to teach a comprehensive and inclusive sex education curriculum. This differential also makes outreach to sexually active young gay men a problem for health and welfare groups thereby possibly helping to spread a range of sexually transmissible infections including HIV.

The existing age of consent differential also reinforces the notion that young homosexual men are somehow more in need of protection and not equal to their peers.

Labor in Government will:

“...ensure uniformity of age across laws relating to the age of consent for lawful sexual activity.” 18

Labor in Government will:

“...strengthen anti-discrimination legislation, particularly in the areas of employment, education, housing, public accommodation, public entertainment and recreation, state taxation, property rights, and fiscal or financial benefits.” 19

Workplace based discrimination is still a very real issue for LGBTIQ workers of all ages. Awareness programs empowering LGBTIQ workers and alerting managers of their responsibilities as well as the establishment of safe places for LGBTIQ workers to report such discrimination need to be established. Particular attention needs to be paid to current exemption provisions within existing anti-discrimination statutes to ensure that some organisations (especially those service providers who are faith-based) are not using these provisions in a malicious manner. It is our belief that public services (including education, health and welfare services) in receipt of taxpayer’s funds should not enjoy religious exemptions under anti-discrimination law for employment or selection of clients.

Labor will expunge the criminal records of consenting LGBTIQ people convicted of the old offence of sodomy and related charges before the decriminalisation of homosexuality.

Labor in Government will further review the law on provocation to investigate if the law meets community expectations. In particular, the Government should consider whether non-violent sexual advances ought to be excluded as a basis for provocation.

Labor recognises that autonomy and self-determination are prerequisites for strong mental health and well-being and these values align with Labor’s record of social justice, inclusion and a right to a strong quality of life. The sex and gender diverse community in Queensland require ongoing government leadership to assist with gender autonomy and social wellbeing.

Labor should therefore commit to an inquiry into the sex and gender diverse communities perspectives on autonomy and rights within current legal and administrative regulation regarding gender identity in Queensland. This inquiry should seek to improve the process of acquiring identity documents issued through Births, Deaths and Marriages so that it does not become necessary or appropriate to define ‘female’ or ‘male’ for members of the gender diverse community. Sex determinants such as ‘unspecified’, in circumstances where a person is in the process of changing their identity from one sex or gender to another (‘transitioning’), or does not identify as having a prescribed sex, should be an option available to the sex and gender diverse community without the need for invasive or prescriptive gender reassignment surgery.20

The legal requirement of a married person having to obtain a divorce before being legally allowed to transition must also be removed.

Older LGBTIQ people are particularly in need of support as they face the problems associated with ageing and isolation. 66% of LGBTIQ people have no or limited knowledge of aged care services and 65% were concerned their sexuality or gender identity would negatively affect the quality of aged care services provided them.21 The Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing has argued that aged LGBTIQ people should be treated as a ‘special needs’ group because of the harm from prejudice and discrimination experienced by them.22

Labor will work with relevant LGBTIQ community based organisations, the Commonwealth and aged care providers to ensure suitable care options are in place for LGBTIQ elders and that the aged care sector is trained and supported in meeting the needs of LGBTIQ elders.

Recognising that marriage is a matter for the Parliament of Australia, and that the power of a Queensland Government to legislate for marriage is non-existent, Labor in Government will legislate:

“To ensure that all couples who have a mutual commitment to a shared life do not suffer discrimination because they are not married, Labor in government will develop relationship registration legislation that will include the opportunity for couples who have a mutual commitment to a shared life to have that relationship registered and certified. This legislation will be based on a relationship recognition scheme.” 23

LGBTIQ parents have also been identified as suffering legal discrimination towards them and their families, although many have been removed in recent years. 24

Labor in Government will work within the Council of Australian Governments to seek uniformity of laws relating to surrogacy, adoption and fostering, and will work tirelessly to ensure that LQBTIQ people are not discriminated against on the basis of their sexual or gender identity in accessing those services.

For many LQBTIQ youth, the education system does not provide a positive, welcoming and inclusive experience.25 The system is often characterised with endemic bullying, lack of recognition and few supportive services available.26 Labor will work with school authorities, parent and teacher groups, teacher unions and other interested parties to examine the curriculum to improve inclusiveness, pilot programs aimed at generating “safe schools” for LGBTIQ young people and seek to ensure sexual health programs are inclusive, comprehensive and non-discriminatory.

It is particularly important that any tender process to award funds to implement such a safe schools program be fully consultative with affected populations, be transparent in process and equitable in practice.

Sport plays a significant role in Australian and Queensland society; however, it is a place where LGBTIQ Queenslanders are largely silent and invisible. Like all Australians, LGBTIQ people enjoy being involved in sport, either as individual participants, in teams or as spectators. Despite extensive changes in social attitudes to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Australians over the last decade, research shows there are still significant levels of discrimination and abuse. There is very little direct empirical research on the sport experience of LGBTIQ Australians. Whilst other disadvantaged groups in the Australian sport context have been recognised in the research and policy agenda, the existence, experiences and needs of LGBTIQ peoples within sport have largely been ignored. Both implicit discrimination that results from ‘heteronormative’ attitudes and explicit discrimination that causes LGBTIQ sports-people to remain in the closet, become isolated and essentially silenced, have shaped a circle of silence on this topic.27

It is clear that homophobia and sexism pervade many sporting environments which are either hostile or conditionally tolerant to LGBTIQ people. This limiting of options for participation of a significant number of Queenslanders is unacceptable, and requires more proactive measures to be undertaken at the club and school levels to create more inclusive environments that are sustainable in both rural and urban communities. Clubs, coaches and sports associations should all be strongly encouraged by the government, particularly those clubs and associations that receive government funding, to ensure their competitions are fair, inclusive and welcoming of all Queenslanders including LGBTIQ Queenslanders.

Notwithstanding the portfolio specific policy priorities listed above, there is a need to establish a whole of government LGBTIQ Reference Group to oversee LGBTIQ related issues and concerns across all government departments and services. Sensitivity training, recruitment, policy and practice matters need to be examined by a select group of community leaders to ensure that all possible mechanisms to promote inclusion and recognition of diversity are put in place.

The Labor Party has a proud legacy of fighting for fairness. We want to build on that legacy by ushering in a new era of inclusiveness, understanding, support and equality for LGBTIQ people in Queensland. The policies that we intend to adopt now that we are elected to Government will make a real difference to the quality of life of ordinary everyday Queenslanders right across our State.

1 1.2 - Queensland Labor State Policy Platform 2014, page 3.
2 Writing Themselves in 3 report, Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society, La Trobe University 2010, page 35
3 6.9 - Queensland Labor State Policy Platform 2014, page 47
4 HIV in Australia Annual Surveillance Report 2014 Supplement, Kirby Institute, University of New South Wales; Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Health & Wellbeing Fact File – Queensland AIDS Council, 2014
5 6.20 - Queensland Labor State Policy Platform 2014, page 49
6 Centres for Disease Control at: http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/prevention/research/prep/
7 Beyond Blue, Fact Sheet 40 - Depression and anxiety in gay, lesbian, transgender and intersex people
8 Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing 2007, Australian Bureau of Statistics.
9 Private Lives: A report on the wellbeing of GLBTI Australians. Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society, LaTrobe University, 2006
10 Commonwealth Department of Health and Aged Care (2000); Suicide Prevention Australia (2009)
11Couch, M., Pitts, M. Et al (2007) “tranZnation: A report on the health and wellbeing of transgender people in Australia and New Zealand.
12 The First Australian National Trans Mental Health Study, Curtin University 2013
13 6.26 - Queensland Labor State Policy Platform 2014, page 51
14 Incidence and vulnerability of LGBTQ homeless youth, US National Alliance to End Homelessness, 2008
15 Personal communication, 2015
16 Understanding the circumstances and experiences of young lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and gender questioning people who are homelessness in Australia: a scoping study, University of Adelaide, 2013
17 8.18 - Queensland Labor State Policy Platform 2014, page 73
18 8.28 - Queensland Labor State Policy Platform 2014, page 75
19 8.27 - Queensland Labor State Policy Platform 2014, page 75
20 Sex Files: the legal recognition: Concluding paper of the sex and gender Australian Human Rights Commission, 2009
21 Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Health & Wellbeing Fact File – Queensland AIDS Council, 2014
22 Department of Health and Ageing, National Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI) Ageing and Aged Care Strategy, 2014
23 8.31 - Queensland Labor State Policy Platform 2014, page 75
24 Australian Human Rights Commission, National Consultation Report, 2015, Chapter 6
25 Tiffany Jones, PhD thesis, University of New England, 2013; The Courier-Mail, ‘Bullying teachers, peers make school hell for gays, and Queensland is most homophobic of all’, 21 Feb 2013
26 Australian Human Rights Commission, National Consultation Report, 2015, page 41
27 Come Out to Play: The Sports experiences of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender
(LGBT) people in Victoria, Institute of Sport, Exercise and Active Living (ISEAL) and the School of Sport and Exercise at Victoria University, 2010