Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee

The Community Support and Services Committee examined the Child Protection and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2020 and recommended it be passed. The bill had previously been examined by the Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee in the 56th Parliament, which also recommended passage. A significant majority of submissions opposed the bill's proposed changes to the permanency hierarchy, particularly regarding the inclusion of adoption as the third preference for non-Indigenous children, with strong concerns raised about the impact on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. The committee acknowledged these concerns but concluded that existing safeguards in the Child Protection Act and Adoption Act were sufficient.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the Crime and Corruption and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2018, which replicated the lapsed 2017 bill from the 55th Parliament. As the bill was identical to the earlier version, the committee relied on evidence already gathered by its predecessor and did not seek further submissions. The committee recommended the bill be passed, supporting the proposed changes to the definition of corrupt conduct and the expansion of the Crime and Corruption Commission's investigatory jurisdiction.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over two months, receiving 14 submissions and holding a public briefing and hearing. The committee recommended the bill be passed. Key areas of concern raised by stakeholders included the regulation of gel blasters as replica firearms, the blanket ban on transferring certain prisoners to low custody facilities, increased penalties for assaulting corrective services officers, and restrictions on payments to prisoners. LNP members filed a statement of reservation objecting to the gel blaster regulation and early parole release provisions.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the Co-operatives National Law Bill 2020 over seven weeks, receiving three submissions, holding a public departmental briefing and a public hearing. All submitters supported the bill. The committee recommended the bill be passed, finding that while it raised several fundamental legislative principle and human rights concerns -- particularly regarding inspector powers, self-incrimination protections, and the automatic adoption of future amendments from NSW -- these were justified in the circumstances.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over five months, receiving nine submissions and holding a public briefing and hearing. The committee recommended the bill not be passed, despite acknowledging arguments on both sides of the optional preferential voting debate. LNP members dissented, filing a Statement of Reservation supporting the bill's intent to restore optional preferential voting as recommended by the post-Fitzgerald Electoral and Administrative Review Commission.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined this omnibus bill, which proposes amendments to 33 Acts and four Regulations across areas including coronial services, the Criminal Code, court administration, and succession law. The committee received submissions from six stakeholders, held a public departmental briefing and a public hearing, and recommended the bill be passed. While the committee found the bill's objectives were sound and most amendments were justified, it noted several fundamental legislative principle issues including retrospective operation, abrogation of the privilege against self-incrimination in coronial inquests, and limitations on the right to trial by jury.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over approximately two months, receiving 26 submissions and holding a public hearing. The committee unanimously recommended the bill be passed. The bill implements key recommendations from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, the Queensland Sentencing Advisory Council's report on child exploitation material, and creates new offences for child abuse objects (child sex dolls). Significant debate centred on mandatory reporting obligations for all adults, the application of failure-to-report and failure-to-protect offences to information gained during religious confession, and the retrospective application of certain sentencing reforms.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over seven weeks, receiving ten submissions and holding a public briefing and hearing. The committee recommended the bill be passed. The Queensland Law Society raised significant concerns about the breadth of expanded electronic device access powers, arguing they could allow police unfettered access to digital information of people not suspected of any offence. Sex worker organisations strongly opposed proposed amendments to the Prostitution Act, and the Minister subsequently withdrew those provisions, referring sex industry regulation to the Queensland Law Reform Commission instead.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined this private member's bill over six months, receiving 132 submissions and holding public hearings in Brisbane and Warwick. The committee recommended the bill not be passed, finding that the proposed penalties were excessive and disproportionate compared to existing offences, the bill's drafting was ambiguous in key areas, and existing Queensland laws already adequately addressed the conduct targeted by the bill. LNP members filed a statement of reservation dissenting from the majority position.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined this Private Member's Bill introduced by Trevor Watts MP (LNP), which proposed firearm prohibition orders, new firearms offences, and increased penalties. The committee received nine submissions and held public hearings. The committee recommended the bill not be passed, citing a lack of stakeholder consultation, concerns about the breadth of police powers to impose firearm prohibition orders without judicial oversight, overlap with existing offences, and insufficient justification for significantly increased penalties. LNP members filed a Statement of Reservation supporting the bill.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill under a truncated timeframe after the government brought the reporting date forward from 4 November to 21 October 2019, citing ongoing protest activity. The committee received over 200 submissions, the vast majority opposing the bill, and held a public hearing on 11 October 2019. Despite substantial concerns raised about the bill's impact on the right to peaceful assembly and the adequacy of existing laws, the committee recommended the bill be passed. Deputy Chair James Lister MP filed a Statement of Reservation expressing concern that the bill's scope was too narrow and would have limited impact on protest activity.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over approximately six weeks, receiving four submissions and holding a public hearing. The committee recommended the bill be passed, finding the national scheme for interstate transfer of community based sentences to be sound. Stakeholders raised concerns about decision-making timeframes, the discretionary nature of transfer decisions, and the lack of a merits review process, but the committee was broadly satisfied with the department's responses. No dissenting views were filed.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the Youth Justice and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2019 over two months, receiving 28 submissions and holding a public hearing with 12 stakeholder organisations. The committee recommended the bill be passed. While stakeholders broadly supported the bill's reforms to bail decision-making, information sharing, and protections for children in the justice system, several raised concerns about the child homicide sentencing provision and the need for adequate resourcing to implement the changes. LNP members filed a Statement of Reservation calling for a 72-hour cap on children's detention in watch houses.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined this private member's bill, which sought to implement recommendations 89 to 94 of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. The committee recommended the bill not be passed, raising concerns about the breadth of key definitions, the retrospective application of the proposed duty of institutions, and fundamental legislative principle issues including that an individual could be nominated as a defendant without their consent. A parallel government bill (Civil Liability and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2018) was addressing several of the same Royal Commission recommendations at the time.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined this private member's bill introduced by David Janetzki MP, which proposed mandatory minimum non-parole periods for the murder of a child (25 years) and a new offence of child homicide (15 years). The committee received 14 submissions and held public hearings, with the overwhelming weight of stakeholder evidence opposing the mandatory sentencing provisions. The committee recommended the bill not be passed.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over two months, receiving 14 submissions and holding a public hearing with seven stakeholder groups. The committee recommended the bill be passed, noting it implements the Queensland Sentencing Advisory Council's recommendation on child homicide sentencing. Stakeholders were divided, with child protection organisations supporting the reforms while the Bar Association of Queensland, Queensland Law Society, and others raised serious concerns about expanding the definition of murder to include reckless indifference and the interaction with mandatory life sentencing. LNP committee members filed a statement of reservation, supporting the bill only if passed in conjunction with a related Private Member's Bill.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined this private member's bill over five months, receiving three submissions and holding a public hearing. The committee recommended the bill not be passed, citing significant concerns about proportionality, the removal of judicial oversight in favour of executive review by the Governor in Council, and potential constitutional invalidity. LNP members filed a statement of reservation disagreeing with the committee's recommendation.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over five months, receiving seven submissions and holding a public briefing and hearing. The committee recommended the bill not be passed, finding it inconsistent with the objectives of the Anti-Discrimination Act 1991 and with fundamental legislative principles. The committee concluded the bill would likely negatively impact transgender, gender diverse and intersex community members.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over approximately four months, receiving five submissions and holding a public briefing and hearing. The committee recommended the bill be passed, acknowledging stakeholder concerns about erosion of the presumption of innocence and fettering of judicial discretion, but concluding that the unique risk posed by persons with terrorism links justified the departure from usual legal protections. Significant concerns were raised about the bill's application to children, its retrospective operation, and its potential to disincentivise rehabilitation.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the Civil Liability and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2018 over several months, receiving submissions and holding public hearings. The committee recommended the bill be passed, finding that the reforms would improve fair access and outcomes for survivors of institutional child sexual abuse seeking civil damages. Opposition members filed a statement of reservation raising concerns about the absence of retrospectivity, the limitation of the bill to sexual abuse only, and the lack of vicarious liability provisions.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the Human Rights Bill 2018 over approximately three months, receiving 149 written submissions and 135 form submissions, holding a public briefing with the Department of Justice and Attorney-General, and conducting a public hearing with stakeholders. The committee recommended that the Bill be passed, noting broad support from the majority of submitters for the proposed dialogue model of human rights protection. Opposition members filed a statement of reservation expressing concerns about whether the Bill added substantive legal protection beyond existing law, the potential for frivolous complaints, and the impact of declarations of incompatibility on the separation of powers.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over six weeks, receiving 18 submissions and holding a public hearing with legal, women's advocacy, and child protection organisations. The committee unanimously recommended the bill be passed, finding the new offences were necessary to close gaps in existing criminal laws that did not adequately cover all forms of non-consensual sharing of intimate images. The committee also called for a review of the new laws three years after commencement to ensure they remain effective as technology changes.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee recommended the Liquor (Rural Hotels Concession) Amendment Bill 2018 be passed. The bill, a Private Member's Bill introduced by Robbie Katter MP, proposed reducing liquor licence fees by 90 per cent for approximately 110 commercial hotels in very remote Queensland. The committee relied on the extensive inquiry conducted by the previous parliament's committee into the substantially identical 2017 Bill, which included 19 submissions, roundtable discussions in seven remote towns, and public hearings. No dissenting views were recorded.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined this wide-ranging police powers bill over approximately two months, receiving five submissions and holding a public briefing and hearing with the Queensland Police Service, Queensland Corrective Services, and key legal stakeholders. The committee recommended the bill be passed, finding that the proposed expansions of police powers — including new search powers for high-risk missing persons, a lowered crime scene threshold, and compelled access to locked electronic storage devices — were justified on balance, noting the safeguards built into the bill such as judicial oversight, body-worn camera recording requirements, and a mandatory five-year review by the Crime and Corruption Commission. The Bar Association of Queensland and Queensland Law Society raised concerns about civil liberties implications of several provisions, but the committee concluded the potential breaches of fundamental legislative principles were outweighed by community safety benefits.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over six weeks, receiving 10 submissions and holding a public hearing. All submitters supported the bill. The committee unanimously recommended the bill be passed, recognising that removing the requirement for married transgender people to divorce before updating their registered sex would have a significant positive impact for members of the LGBTIQ community.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the Guardianship and Administration and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2018, which was substantially the same as a 2017 bill that lapsed when Parliament was dissolved. The committee relied on evidence gathered by the previous Parliament's committee, including 18 submissions and a public hearing with over a dozen witnesses. The committee recommended the bill be passed, noting broad stakeholder support for reforms to modernise Queensland's guardianship laws and strengthen safeguards for adults with impaired capacity. A Statement of Reservation was filed but its content was not available in the extracted report text.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over a short timeframe, holding a public hearing in Brisbane on 26 February 2018 with witnesses including the Privacy Commissioner. The committee recommended the bill be passed, while also recommending a review of the legislation two years after commencement to evaluate how the identity matching services were being used. The bill also included unrelated amendments to extend liquor trading hours on the Gold Coast during the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill and recommended it be passed. The bill introduced Drug and Alcohol Treatment Orders (DATOs) as a new sentencing option, creating a judicially supervised rehabilitation pathway for offenders with severe substance use disorders. The committee heard from stakeholders including legal services and drug and alcohol agencies, and also considered provisions on criminal history disclosure, dangerous drug definitions, and protection of witnesses in domestic violence proceedings.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over six months, travelling to seven very remote Queensland communities to hold public roundtable discussions with hoteliers and local stakeholders. The committee unanimously recommended the bill be passed, finding broad support for reducing licence fees for hotels in very remote areas that serve as vital community hubs.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined this private member's bill introduced by Mr Robbie Katter MP, which sought to reverse the 1989 parliamentary removal of Supreme Court Judge Angelo Vasta. The committee recommended the bill not be passed. While government members acknowledged concerns about the process and the lack of an appeal avenue, non-government members concluded there was no conclusive evidence the original decision was wrong.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill and recommended it be passed. The committee received four submissions and held a public briefing with the Queensland Police Service. While the committee acknowledged significant concerns raised by the Queensland Law Society, the Queensland Council for Civil Liberties, and the Office of the Information Commissioner about the expansion of police search and surveillance powers, it accepted the Queensland Police Service's justifications that the enhanced powers were necessary to respond effectively to terrorist incidents and critical emergencies.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over two months, receiving four submissions and holding a public briefing and public hearing. The committee recommended the bill be passed, noting it would require the Parole Board to consider a prisoner's cooperation in locating a victim's body or remains before granting parole for homicide offences. Stakeholders including the Queensland Law Society, Bar Association, and Queensland Council for Civil Liberties raised concerns about the impact on wrongly convicted prisoners and the retrospective application of the amendments.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over two months, receiving 13 submissions and holding a public briefing and hearing. The committee recommended the bill be passed. The bill establishes an administrative scheme to expunge historical convictions and charges for homosexual activity that occurred before 19 January 1991, when Queensland decriminalised consensual adult male homosexual activity. Non-government members supported passage but disagreed with the inclusion of 'public morality' offences, which were not recommended by the Queensland Law Reform Commission.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the Court and Civil Legislation Amendment Bill 2017, an omnibus bill amending over 30 pieces of legislation to streamline court and tribunal processes, strengthen the Ombudsman's powers, modernise Legal Aid Queensland eligibility, and clarify various laws. The committee recommended the bill be passed. Non-government members filed a Statement of Reservation raising concerns about removing the requirement for the Legal Aid Queensland CEO to be a lawyer.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over two months, receiving seven submissions and holding a public hearing with the Department of Justice and Attorney-General. The committee recommended the bill be passed. Non-government members filed a statement of reservation raising concerns about the broadened definition of corrupt conduct potentially overwhelming the Crime and Corruption Commission, and about the derivative use of compelled evidence.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill and unanimously recommended it be passed. The bill implemented key recommendations from the Sofronoff QC review of Queensland's parole system, triggered by the alleged murder of an elderly woman by a paroled prisoner in 2016. The committee received four submissions and held public hearings with legal stakeholders and victims' groups.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over one month, receiving 32 submissions and holding a public hearing. The committee was unable to reach a majority decision on whether the bill should be passed. Government members considered the bill required more consultation and significant amendment, while non-government members urged passage, arguing the safety of domestic violence victims should take priority.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the Criminal Law Amendment Bill 2016, receiving nine submissions and holding a public hearing. The committee recommended that the bill be passed. The bill's most significant reform was the abolition of the so-called 'gay panic' defence by excluding unwanted sexual advances from the partial defence of provocation in murder cases.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over a compressed 10-day timeframe and recommended it be passed. The committee considered stakeholder views on repealing liquor venue lock out provisions, with many submitters supporting the repeal. The Queensland Government accepted the committee's recommendation.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill and recommended it be passed. The bill implemented recommendations from the statutory review of the Victims of Crime Assistance Act 2009, the Special Taskforce on Domestic and Family Violence, and introduced a sexual assault counselling privilege for Queensland. The committee's single recommendation was that the bill be passed, with no dissenting views recorded.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over seven weeks, receiving 282 submissions and holding public hearings on the Gold Coast and in Brisbane. The committee was unable to reach a majority decision on whether the bill should be passed. Non-government members filed a Statement of Reservation opposing the bill, arguing the underlying reviews were flawed and the changes would weaken law enforcement capabilities against organised crime.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the government bill alongside a related private member's bill, receiving 23 submissions and holding public hearings. The committee recommended the government bill be passed and the private member's bill not be passed. Both government and non-government members supported the bill, though non-government members sought amendments to extend its scope beyond institutional settings to cover all child sexual abuse victims.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over approximately three months, receiving 21 submissions and holding a public hearing. The committee unanimously recommended the bill be passed, finding broad support for its key reforms including standardising the age of consent and enabling GP access to the Queensland Health database known as The Viewer. No dissenting views were recorded.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined this private member's bill alongside the government's Fire and Emergency Services (Domestic Smoke Alarms) Amendment Bill 2016, receiving 31 submissions and holding public hearings. Both bills sought to mandate photoelectric smoke alarms in all residential premises following the 2011 Slacks Creek house fire that killed 11 people. The committee was not able to reach a majority decision on whether to recommend either bill be passed, though all members agreed that photoelectric smoke alarms should replace ionisation alarms.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the Public Safety Business Agency and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2016, which implemented the Public Service Commission's 2015 review of the PSBA. The committee received submissions from the Queensland Police Commissioned Officers' Union, the United Firefighters' Union, and the PSBA itself, and held a public briefing. The committee unanimously recommended the bill be passed.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill, which covers the merger of CrimTrac into the Australian Crime Commission, amendments to police powers regarding evidence admissions, vehicle searches for knives, and fire and emergency services. The committee recommended the bill be passed, but government members filed a Statement of Reservation opposing the proposed amendment to section 439 of the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act 2000 regarding the admissibility of unrecorded confessions.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the Counter-Terrorism and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2016 and recommended it be passed. The bill proposed amendments to four Acts to enhance counter-terrorism and emergency management powers. The committee identified several fundamental legislative principle concerns, particularly around administrative power, onus of proof, power to enter premises, protection against self-incrimination, and immunity from proceedings. No dissenting views were recorded.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill over six weeks, receiving 13 submissions. The committee was unable to reach agreement on whether the bill should be passed. The bill sought to close the Childrens Magistrates Court when hearing youth justice matters, increase the transfer age from youth detention to adult corrections from 17 to 18, and reinstate court-referred youth justice conferencing. Non-government members filed a Statement of Reservation opposing the bill.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the Penalties and Sentences (Queensland Sentencing Advisory Council) Amendment Bill 2016 and made two technical amendment recommendations. The committee recommended replacing the word 'suffering' with appropriate terminology in the council membership provisions, and inserting the word 'present' to clarify meeting quorum procedures. The Queensland Government accepted both recommendations and moved amendments during consideration in detail.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee recommended the bill be passed, implementing key recommendations from the Special Taskforce on Domestic and Family Violence in Queensland (the 'Not Now, Not Ever' report). The committee received 20 submissions and held public hearings, finding broad support for the bill's reforms. The committee requested the Attorney-General address submitter concerns about consent, reckless indifference, and the bill's application to juveniles during the second reading debate.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill (Report No. 22, 55th Parliament). The committee received 28 submissions from a range of stakeholders including Legal Aid Queensland, the Anti-Discrimination Commission Queensland, the Bar Association of Queensland, and several child and youth advocacy organisations. The full report text is not available in the database; only an erratum correcting the submissions list was extracted.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill, which amends the Crime and Corruption Act 2001 to implement recommendations from the Parliamentary Crime and Corruption Committee's review of the Crime and Corruption Commission. The committee was unable to reach a majority decision on whether to recommend the bill be passed. Key contentious issues included the removal of statutory declaration requirements for complaints (allowing anonymous complaints), the definition of 'bipartisan support' for CCC appointments, and the restoration of the CCC's corruption prevention and independent research functions.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined this bill over three months, receiving 767 submissions, conducting site visits to Sydney, Newcastle, Brisbane, Cairns, Townsville and the Gold Coast, and hearing from Queensland Police, health professionals and industry stakeholders. The committee was unable to reach a majority decision to recommend the bill be passed. It made three procedural recommendations regarding data collection, post-implementation evaluation, and drafting issues. Government members made two additional recommendations on takeaway liquor trading hours and renaming 'lockout' to 'one way door'.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined this private member's bill introduced by Robbie Katter MP, which proposed increasing Queensland's electoral districts from 89 to 93, requiring bipartisan support for Electoral Commission appointments, and appointing a demography expert to the Commission. The committee was unable to reach a majority decision to recommend the bill be passed. The committee received five submissions and noted uncertainty about whether adding four seats would meaningfully improve representation in large remote electorates.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill, which sought to restore civil partnership ceremony provisions removed by the Newman Government in 2012. The committee was unable to reach a majority decision on whether to recommend the bill be passed, meaning the motion to recommend passage failed. The committee found no issues with fundamental legislative principles. Government members filed a statement of reservation expressing concern that the report excluded evidence from submitters who shared personal stories about how the bill would change their lives.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the bill and recommended it be passed, with three additional recommendations all supported by the Queensland Government. The committee focused on safeguards around preventative detention orders, including enhanced parliamentary reporting requirements and an earlier independent review of the legislation.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee recommended the private member's bill be passed, with two additional recommendations. The committee recommended reducing the proposed craft brewery production threshold from 40 million litres to five million litres per year, and updating the bill's title to reflect that it amends legislation beyond liquor and fair trading. Government members expressed reservations about four aspects of the bill, including relaxing approved manager availability requirements, exempting campdrafting events from community liquor permits, and allowing after-hours alcohol consumption in hotel foyers.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined this Private Member's Bill which proposed changes to the Queensland Redistribution Commission's size, appointment process, and the number of seats in the Legislative Assembly. The committee was unable to reach a majority decision on whether the bill should be passed, with non-government members supporting the bill and government members opposing it. No formal recommendation for passage was made.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the Queensland Training Assets Management Authority Repeal Bill 2015 but was unable to reach a majority decision on whether the bill should be passed. Government members supported the bill while non-government members opposed it. The committee received approximately 60 submissions and found that while TAFE campus closures, job losses, and course reductions had caused distress, these were not attributable to QTAMA but to separate decisions by the Department of Education and TAFE Queensland.

The Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee examined the Electoral and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2015 and tabled its report on 1 May 2015. The committee made three recommendations, all focused on clarifying penalty provisions in new section 264(9) relating to third party disclosure obligations. The government accepted the third recommendation in part, proposing amendments to clarify obligations for candidates and political parties regarding return requirements for gifts.