In a busy day of government business on Thursday the House passed three bills, including the Equality Legislation Amendment (LGBTIQA+) Bill, which originated as a private members’ bill in the Legislative Assembly in 2023 and was referred to committee before making its way to the Council. A matter of public importance related to the policing of protests was also debated by the House. Read on for more… 

MATTER OF PUBLIC IMPORTANCE: POLICING OF PROTESTS IN NEW SOUTH WALES 

Matter of public importance debates provide members with the opportunity to discuss key issues without requiring the House to vote on the matter at the end debate. The only vote associated with these debates is to determine whether they should take place at all. 

At the beginning of Thursday’s sitting, on the motion of Ms Sue Higginson (The Greens), the House agreed to debate as a matter of public importance “policing of protests in New South Wales”. 

Contributions to the debate were made by members of the Government, the Opposition, The Greens and Independent member the Hon Rod Roberts. Find details in the Hansard record here, and also here.  

PASSED: Equality Legislation Amendment (LGBTIQA+) Bill 2023 

The Equality Legislation Amendment (LGBTIQA+) Bill 2023 passed the Legislative Council on Thursday, after having passed the Legislative Assembly on the previous sitting day. The bill, introduced as a private members’ bill in the Assembly, was “picked up” by the Government in the Council, with Minister the Hon Penny Sharpe introducing it on Thursday. The bill amends various Acts and other legislation to modernise laws and advance equality for LGBTIQA+ persons in NSW. 

The bill amends the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 1995 removing the requirement for trans and gender-diverse people to undergo surgery to change their registered sex on their birth certificate. Individuals aged 18 and over will be able to change their registered sex through an administrative process, with the application including a statutory declaration from the applicant and a supporting statement from an adult who has known them for at least 12 months. Parents will be able to apply to change the registered sex of a child under 18, with the application needing a statement from a qualified counsellor who has provided counselling to the child.  

The bill also amends the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 to require that decisions regarding a child’s care consider their gender identity or sex characteristics. It also removes duplication in court processes for medical treatments already approved by another court. The Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence) Act 2007 is amended to include “outing” someone without their consent as a form of harassment or intimidation, especially in the context of domestic abuse and expands sentencing guidelines to consider hate crimes motivated by prejudice against trans, gender-diverse, or intersex people. The bill updates the Mental Health Act 2007’s list of expressions or behaviours that do not define a person as mentally ill, amends laws criminalising those who live off the earnings of sex work and amends the Surrogacy Act 2010 to allow parentage orders for children born through international commercial surrogacy based on the child’s best interests. Read more about the bill in Minister Sharpe’s second reading speech.  

Contributions to the second reading debate were made by members of the Opposition, the Government, The Greens, the Libertarian Party, the Legalise Cannabis Party, the Animal Justice Party and Independent member the Hon Rod Roberts. Read all member contributions in the Hansard record. 

The House divided on the second reading of the bill (Ayes: 17/Noes: 13) before the House resolved into committee of the whole for consideration of a number of amendments. 

  • Five amendments were moved by Ms Abigail Boyd on behalf of the Greens which sought to introduce discrimination protections for sex workers. These amendments were negatived on the voices. 
  • Two amendments were moved the Hon John Ruddick on behalf of the Libertarian Party which sought to amend provisions in the Act which penalised individuals who “out” transgender people and those who work as sex workers. These amendments were negatived on the voices. 
  • One amendment was moved by Dr Amanda Cohn on behalf of The Greens which sought to amend the Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 adding protections for people based on their sexual orientation and gender identity and remove an exemption allowing non-government schools to discriminate against teachers and students based on their sexuality or gender identity. This amendment was negatived on division (Ayes: 5/Noes: 26) 
  • One amendment was moved by Mr Ruddick which sought to add registered sex offenders and child sex offenders to the list of restricted persons for change of sex restrictions. This amendment was negatived on the voices.  
  • Two amendments were moved by Mr Ruddick which sought to ensure that only a registered and practising psychiatrist can act as a qualified person when consulting persons under the age of 18 about a change in gender. This amendment was negatived on the voices. 
  • 15 further amendments were moved by Dr Cohn which sought to allow for persons aged under 16 to alter their personal documents if they have the support of their parents and remove the limitation on the rights of prisoners to make application without the approval of a supervising authority. These amendments were negatived on division (Ayes: 5/Noes: 24). 
  • One final amendment was moved by Dr Cohn which sought to require the Public Service Commissioner to create a minimum diversity and inclusion standard for all public sector agencies. This amendment was negatived on division (Ayes: 5/Noes: 24). 

Read the full committee of the whole proceedings in the Hansard record, and continued here.  

The House divided on the third reading of the bill (Ayes: 15/Noes: 12) before the bill was returned to the Legislative Assembly, ready for the Governor’s assent. 

PASSED: Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Certification) Bill 2024 

Also passing the Legislative Council on Thursday was the Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Certification) Bill 2024. The bill amends the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 to provide that the Minister for Planning and Public Spaces may certify development in certain circumstances and validate certain certificates. 

In his second reading speech, the Hon Mark Buttigieg (Labor) explained that the bill includes the Minister in the definition of certifier for development projects where the Minister is the consent authority, particularly in the alpine region, and exempts the Minister and delegates from private certifier registration under the Building and Development Certifiers Act 2018. The bill also allows Transport for NSW and port operators to issue subdivision certificates for projects within their jurisdiction. Additionally, it retroactively validates four occupation certificates issued by the Minister’s delegates and reinstates the power to regulate building information certificate fees, which were unintentionally removed by amendments to the Act in 2018. The bill also replaces existing savings provisions, due to lapse in December 2024, to ensure the continued delivery of certification services and resolve transitional issues. Read more about the bill in Mr Buttigieg’s second reading speech. 

Members of the Opposition and The Greens contributed to the second reading debate. Read the full debate in the Hansard record. 

Both the second and third readings of the bill were agreed to on the voices, with the bill then returned to the Assembly, ready to be forwarded to the Governor for assent.  

PASSED: State Emergency and Rescue Management Amendment Bill 2024 

The State Emergency and Rescue Management Amendment Bill 2024 passed the Legislative Council on Thursday, having passed the Legislative Assembly on a previous sitting day. This bill amends the State Emergency and Rescue Management Act 1989 to enable the temporary closure of roads by emergency services organisations and to give an additional function to the State Emergency Management Committee.  

In his second reading speech, the Hon Mark Buttigieg (Labor) explained that the bill grants emergency services new powers to temporarily close roads due to obstructions or traffic dangers, even outside emergencies, such as minor incidents. This applies to various organisations, including Ambulance, Fire and Rescue and NSW Police, allowing “responsible persons” to act, with conditions like notifying authorities post-closure. The bill also amends the State Emergency and Rescue Management Act to support the emergency volunteer workforce, formalising Education Services as a new Functional Area in emergency management. This includes coordinating school closures during emergencies. Additionally, it empowers Local and Regional Emergency Operations Controllers (LEOCONs, REOCONs) to issue safety directives. Read more about the bill in Mr Buttigieg’s second reading speech. 

Members of the Opposition, the Government and The Greens contributed to the second reading debate. Read all member contributions in the Hansard record. 

Following the second reading debate being agreed to, the Hon Emma Hurst (Animal Justice Party) moved an instruction to committee of the whole to enable it to consider amendments that would otherwise be outside the leave of the bill relating to the Wildlife Information Rescue and Education Service [WIRES]. The motion for the instruction was agreed to on the voices. 

When the House resolved into committee of the whole one amendment was moved by the Hon Emma Hurst on behalf of the Animal Justice Party which sought to correct the name of the Wildlife Information, Rescue and Education Service in the Act, which was incorrectly referred to as “Wildlife Information and Rescue Service”. This amendment was agreed to on the voices. Read the whole committee of the whole proceedings in the Hansard record. 

With the third reading of the bill agreed to on the voices, the bill as amended was sent on to the Legislative Assembly for concurrence. 

GENERAL MOTIONS 

The following motions were agreed to without debate, during the day’s formal business: 

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