Gay and lesbian couples are missing out on basic legal rights enjoyed by mainstream Australian couples because federal MPs are lagging behind state and territory governments in removing discrimination against them. A new study published by an Australian National University think tank, the Democratic Audit of Australia, found a significant minority of Australians missed out on both rights and entitlements because they were not heterosexual. The report's authors, Sarah Maddison from the University of NSW and Emma Partridge from the University of Technology in Sydney, said Australia was falling behind other comparable countries in extending rights to all citizens. "That limited recognition of same-sex relationships in federal legislation means, for instance, that non-heterosexual parents and their children have only limited legal protections in the areas such as inheritance, child support, contact and parental authority," Dr Maddison said. "We have seen significant legislative and policy change by state and territory governments, but we haven't seen concurrent change at a federal level, leaving Australia lagging behind comparable countries, especially in the area of relationship recognition." The findings of the report, titled How well does Australia serve sexual and gender minorities, also extend to people in transsexual and intersex circumstances. It follows the recent publication of another report, by the Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission that identified 58 federal laws that denied same-sex couples and families' basic financial and work-related entitlements. "Being openly gay is no longer an automatic barrier to a successful public life and same-sex families are becoming increasingly accepted," Dr Maddison said. "(But) even a High Court judge, Michael Kirby, is unable to obtain pension rights for his partner of 38 years equal to those his married colleagues enjoy." However, the report did not single out the Federal Government alone for blame, noting: "Public policy and public opinion are closely related. Both draw on hetero-normative constructions that are mutually reinforcing." More than 24,000 same-sex couples identified their relationships in the 2006 census published last month, 25 per cent more than in the 2001 census. But the Australian Bureau of Statistics has admitted the community is under-reported. Ref: The Age (m)