New sexual consent laws come into force: What you need to know

An Australian state has passed new sexual consent laws that now include the definition of “stealthing” as rape and lead to harsher penalties for perpetrators.

Revised laws came into force in Queensland on Monday, aimed at “improving the experience” of victims of sexual assault if they are willing to make the courageous decision to come forward and report.

Among the reforms is that the act of “stealthing” is now a criminal offense – which can result in a maximum sentence of life in prison, Yahoo reported.

In “stealthing,” one sexual partner secretly removes the condom during intercourse without the other partner’s knowledge or consent.

By recognizing secret conduct as rape, Queensland is in line with most other Australian states and territories, including Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory, South Australia, Tasmania and New South Wales.

As part of the changes, the official definition of consent was also revised.

It was previously defined as “a free and voluntary gift given by a person who has the cognitive capacity to do so.”

But now the word “given” has been replaced by “agreed”.

Stealthing occurs when a sexual partner removes the condom during intercourse but does not tell the person with whom he or she is having sex (pictured is a condom).

Queensland Health and Women's Minister Shannon Fentiman had previously told the media that the state was committed to holding sex offenders accountable.

“We know that non-physical violence is just as dangerous as physical violence,” she said.

“Coercive control is also the biggest predictor of domestic partner homicide, which is why we have taken tough measures to make coercive control a criminal offence in Queensland.

“Reforms to consent laws aim to improve the experiences of victims of sexual assault when they make the courageous decision to come forward and hold their perpetrators accountable.”

Ms Fentiman also commented on the new stealthing reforms.

“It is rape and should be treated as such under the law,” she said.

The Women's Safety and Justice Taskforce's final report, “Hear Her Voice,” recommended 188 legislative reforms, including an overhaul of consent laws.

The new bill was developed in consultation with numerous stakeholders, including organizations dealing with sexual violence.

Queensland Health and Women's Minister Shannon Fentiman is determined to bring perpetrators to justice

The Queensland Government will spend $225 million to implement the recommendations, including a major IT upgrade in 81 courts across the state to facilitate victim testimony.

Townsville's 24/7 Sexual Assault Response Team is expanding and extending to two additional locations.

The reform was introduced after Queensland, along with NSW, recorded the largest increase in victims of sexual assault in 2023, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

In Queensland there was an annual increase of 14 percent to 1,011 victims, while in NSW the number of victims of sexual violence increased by 19 percent to 2,296.

Nationwide, there were an astonishing 35,138 victims.

84 percent or 30,466 of the victims nationwide were women.

If you need assistance, contact 1800RESPECT.