| Qld surrogacy ban under review |
 Gay couples in Queensland may soon be able to have children via altruistic surrogacy following the release of a Parliamentary issues paper which found that under current laws, such arrangements could attract a $7,500 fine or three years imprisonment.
“In 2006-2007, only 14 children were available for adoption in Queensland. Decriminalising altruistic surrogacy may offer some Queenslanders their only hope of having a child,” Committee chair Linda Lavarch said. The committee’s discussion paper notes that adoption in Queensland is currently limited to heterosexual couples and that Queensland law does not currently recognise same sex parents on birth certificates. After recent announcements from NSW and Victoria, Queensland and South Australia will also be the only Australian states that do not formally recognise lesbian co-parents. Action Reform Change Queensland (ARCQ) spokesperson Rodney Goodbun told Queensland Pride the lobby group had held “constructive discussions” with the government about recognising same-sex parenting arrangements. The group will prepare a submission advocating that same sex couples should have access to surrogacy arrangements and that the Queensland Government must also undertake broader reform on same sex parenting issues in line with last year's recommendations from the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. "It is highly likely that this investigation will flush out all the old homophobic arguments from the Christian right against same sex parents. But there is now a body of evidence stretching over 25 years demonstrating that children from same sex parents have the same social outcomes as children from heterosexual parents. “Kids grow up in all sorts of family arrangements with male and female involvement from parents, aunties, uncles, grandparents and family friends. The argument that children should have a mother and father has been refuted by the evidence that indicates the quality of parenting and family life is was counts. “I urge GLBT people to participate in the investigation by contributing to the ARCQ submission or by writing their own letter expressing your views about same sex parenting,” Goodbun said. Submissions close on June 13. For a copy of the committee’s issues paper and guidelines on how to make a submission visit the committee’s website at www.parliament.qld.gov.au/surrogacy
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