He made the pledge when opening Melbourne’s LGBTI — lesbian, gay, bi, trans and intersex — community festival, Midsumma.

“Equality is not negotiable,” he said after being escorted to an Alexandra Gardens’ stage by drag artist Dolly Diamond.

He said the appointment of Martin Foley as Australia’s first Minister for Equality showed his government would not settle until “every Victorian can feel safe and confident to be exactly who they are”.

The achievement of adoption equality and safe schools for LGBTI youth was high on the list of priorities.

Mr Andrews also promised to reverse the previous LNP government’s changes to the Equal Opportunity Act, allowing faith-based organisations to discriminate on the basis of sexuality.

Festival “champion” Professor Kerryn Phelps said supporters must also agitate for change, not only in Australia, where 82 discriminatory laws had been removed at a federal level, but also globally.

“We need to develop a global consciousness, and recognise any act of hate or discrimination is an action against us.”

She highlighted the plight of Russian and Ugandan communities and startling footage of apparent Islamic State executions of gay men by throwing them blindfolded from tall buildings.

“The world is not a safe place for many of us across the globe,” she said. “We fight for full equality, others fight for their very survival.”