 Baird's reputation as a "darling of social media" was tarnished as the hashtag #casinomike became the number one trending topic nationwide on Twitter in reference to lockout laws not applying to Star City Casino, as it is located outside the entertainment and cbd precincts where the laws apply.A protest was organised in response to Baird's comments by community group Keep Sydney Open on 21 February 2016, with over 15,000 people marching in Sydney's CBD and calling on the Baird government to abolish the lockout laws.On 19 January 2017, Baird announced he was retiring from politics, with his resignation to be effective after a leadership spill the following week.