Mardi Gras parade concludes as clean-up begins

Some will be waking up on Sunday with undoubtedly sore heads while others may not have made it to bed yet after the famous party weekend.

Rainbow confetti and costume debris lined Oxford Street in inner Sydney after the parade on Saturday night.

Beer cans and shattered glass were also seen along the route.

As festivities raged on, clean-up crews were quick to get to work, racing to get banners off barricades as the parade concluded.

The party continued at post parade events around Sydney.

Tensions in the lead-up over the participation of NSW Police in the parade culminated in a positive reception as uniformed police flanked ununiformed gay and lesbian liaison officers marching alongside Commissioner Karen Webb and Police Minister Yasmin Catley.

A brief scuffle earlier broke out between police and pro-Palestinian protesters as smoke from flares filled the air.

"Yesterday's celebration was a great example of a successful Mardi Gras event. The majority of people were well-behaved and enjoyed the event safely and responsibly," operation commander, NSW Police assistant commissioner Anthony Cooke said.

While there were no major incidents, police arrested seven men and two women for entering the parade route as Premier Chris Minns approached, police said. All nine were taken to Surry Hills police station, with inquiries continuing.

An estimated 120,000 spectators and 12,500 participants attended the event, said police.

Police were uninvited from the march after an officer was charged with the murder of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies, intensifying the ongoing debate about police presence in the parade, stemming back to the response to the first event in 1978.

Tributes to the pair took place throughout the parade.

First held more than four decades ago as a protest against discrimination, the Sydney Mardi Gras has become one of the world's largest LGBTQI events.

Australian Associated Press