Queensland is 'carefully considering' its drug-driving review — what's actually on the table
Queensland's Department of Transport and Main Roads ran a public consultation — the 'Cannabis and driving in Queensland' paper — examining how the state's drug-driving laws treat cannabis, including prescribed medicinal cannabis. The review that followed has been handed to government, and a TMR statement reported in June 2026 says government is 'carefully considering recommendations'.
What's on the table:
- The consultation paper canvassed a range of options for the treatment of medicinal cannabis patients under Queensland's two drug-driving offences (TORUM Act 1995 s79: relevant-drug-present, and the more serious driving under the influence).
- A proposed amendment inserting section 79(2AB) — a defence where THC was legally obtained and administered in accordance with a prescription and the driver was not under the influence — has been floated in Parliament. It is a proposal, not law.
- A parliamentary e-petition calling for a statutory medical defence for prescribed, unimpaired drivers remains active.
- Professional bodies made submissions supporting reform, including the RANZCP's feedback on the consultation paper.
What it means right now: nothing has changed. Queensland's presence offence applies in full, a prescription is not a defence, and 'carefully considering' has no commencement date. Charged in the meantime? The review is not a defence — see our Queensland tested-positive guide.
We'll post when government publishes its response, when any bill is introduced, and — the date that matters — if a defence commences.