The final Parliamentary sitting of 2024 came with urgent ‘Adult Crime, Adult time’ legislation passed and the introduction of a Bill abolishing stamp duty on new builds for eligible first-home buyers and a payroll tax and mental health levy exemption for wages paid by medical practices to GPs.
Bills introduced
The following bills were introduced into the Legislative Assembly:
- Health Practitioner Regulation National Law and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2024
- Revenue Legislation Amendment Bill 2024.
Health Practitioner Regulation National Law and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2024
On 12 December 2024, the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2024 was introduced to the Queensland Parliament.
The key objectives of the Bill are to:
- protect public safety by establishing a nationally consistent process for practitioners to regain registration after their registration has been cancelled, or they have been disqualified from registration, by a tribunal;
- increase transparency for the public about disciplinary action against health practitioners who have been found by a tribunal to have engaged in serious sexual misconduct; and
- strengthen protections for notifiers and clarify consumer protections in relation to nondisclosure agreements about the health, conduct or performance of health practitioners.
The Bill amends the:
- Health Ombudsman Act 2013
- Health Practitioner Regulation National Law Act 2009
Useful resources:
The Bill was referred to the Health, Environment and Innovation Committee for inquiry. Submissions to the inquiry will close on 9 January 2025 and a public hearing is scheduled to be held on 28 January 2025. For further details regarding the inquiry process, visit the committee’s website here.
Revenue Legislation Amendment Bill 2024
On 12 December 2024, the Revenue Legislation Amendment Bill 2024 was introduced to the Queensland Parliament.
The Bill amends legislation administered by the Commissioner of State Revenue (Commissioner) to implement revenue-related commitments made by the Queensland Government during the 2024 State Election campaign. To implement these 2024 State Election commitments, the Duties Act 2001 (Duties Act) is amended to:
- For eligible dutiable transactions that involve first home owners purchasing a new home or vacant land on which to build a home, provide full duty relief in respect of the first home owners’ interests and to the extent they use the new home as their home (transfer duty first home new home relief); and
- Enable recipients of the transfer duty home concessions to rent part of their property during the one-year occupation period and retain the full benefit of this relief.
The Payroll Tax Act 1971 (Payroll Tax Act) is also amended to introduce an exemption to provide that wages liable to payroll tax and the mental health levy do not include wages paid or payable by medical practices to GPs.
The Bill amends the:
• Duties Act 2001
• Payroll Tax Act 1971
Useful resources:
The Bill was referred to the State Development, Infrastructure and Works Committee for inquiry. Submissions to the inquiry will close on 9 January 2025 and a public hearing is scheduled to be held on 23 January 2025. For further details regarding the inquiry process, visit the committee’s website here.
Legislation passed this Parliament
Making Queensland Safer Bill 2024 – passed with amendment
On 28 November 2024, the Making Queensland Safer Bill 2024 was introduced to the Queensland Parliament. The Bill was referred to the Justice, Integrity and Community Safety Committee for inquiry.
The Bill was passed with amendment on 12 December 2024.
QLS appeared before the parliamentary committee inquiring into the Bill and made a submission on the Bill, which can be found here.
According to the Explanatory Notes, the overarching objective of the Bill is to give effect to the State Government’s election commitment to implement legislative reforms as part of the Making Queenslanders Safe Plan, including ‘adult crime, adult time’.
Notably, the Bill amends the Youth Justice Act 1992 to remove the current restrictions on minimum, mandatory and maximum sentences for children for several offences in the Criminal Code, including:
- Murder
- Manslaughter
- Unlawful striking causing death
- Acts intended to cause grievous bodily harm and other malicious acts
- Wounding
- Dangerous operation of a vehicle
- Serious assault
- Unlawful use or possession of motor vehicles, aircraft or vessels
- Robbery
- Burglary
- Entering or being in premises and committing indictable offences
- Unlawful entry of vehicle for committing indictable offence.
The Bill also removes the principle of detention as a last resort and the principle that a non-custodial order is better than detention in promoting a child’s ability to reintegrate into the community.
The Bill provides a new definition of a criminal history of a child to include cautions, restorative justice agreements and contraventions of a supervised release order.
Amendments to the Childrens Court Act 1992 further open up the Childrens Court to victims’ representatives, victims’ relatives, the representatives of relatives of a deceased victim and people holding media accreditation.
Amendments were moved during consideration in detail to achieve its policy objectives by:
- Clarifying the definition of the criminal history of a child includes all decisions, findings and orders made, and actions taken, under specific provisions of the Youth Justice Act 1992 (Youth Justice Act);
- Providing that where a court is making an order for a child to serve a period of detention for a prescribed offence under section 175A, the court must (rather than may) set a release date at any point during the period of the detention, subject to any requirement to serve a minimum sentence;
- Clarifying that a Childrens Court magistrate cannot impose a period of detention greater than three years when sentencing a child for a prescribed offence under the ‘adult crime, adult time’ provision (new section 175A of the Youth Justice Act).
The Bill amends the:
- Childrens Court Act 1992
- Criminal Code Act 1899
- Youth Justice Act 1992
- And the Acts mentioned in schedule 1 of the Bill
Useful resources:
- Parliamentary Report
- Bill
- Explanatory Note
- Statement of Compatibility
- Explanatory Speech
- Committee
- Amendment in Committee – Government Agreed
- Amendment in Committee – Explanatory Note
- Amendment in Committee – Statement of Compatibility
Subordinate legislation
Subordinate Queensland Legislation notified in 2024 is available online.
Queensland Government Gazette
The Queensland Government Gazettes for 2024 are available online.
Parliamentary sitting dates
As indicated on the parliamentary website, the Queensland Parliament is currently scheduled to next sit from 18 February to 20 February 2025.
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