3 July 2026 – LGBTIQ+ groups and women’s organisations say the Coalition’s Bill to redefine ‘sex’ would undermine the privacy and safety of all women, and strip trans people of basic legal protections.
The Bill, voted down in the Senate 30 votes to 21 on Wednesday, would have also overridden existing state and territory protections, reversed decades of progress in anti-discrimination law for women and created unintended consequences for intersex people.
Chair of the Women’s Legal Services Australia, Elena Rosenman:
“The SDA provides critical protection for women, trans and gender diverse people and people who are intersex. This Bill would weaken these protections and take Australia backwards by inviting gender policing.
“No woman should have to prove she is 'woman enough' to be protected from discrimination. The strength of the SDA is that it reflects the reality of women's lives and protects people from discrimination based on harmful gender stereotypes.
“At a time when women continue to face discrimination, harassment and gender-based violence, Parliament should be focused on strengthening those protections for everyone - not creating a two-tiered system where some women are protected and others are left behind.”
National Convenor of the Women’s Electoral Lobby, Kay Anastassiadis:
“The Coalition’s Bill is an attack on fairness and is out of step with what women want. Everyone deserves dignity and the right to be judged on their merits instead of irrelevant assumptions about their identity.
“We don’t want a situation where women are being judged as ‘not female enough’ to enter a women-only space, just because they might look or sound different to the stereotype.”
Equality Australia CEO Anna Brown:
"These are ill-considered and sweeping changes with far-reaching consequences, driven by a political campaign targeting one of the smallest and most marginalised communities in Australia.
“While it may not be the intention of the Coalition, this Bill would fundamentally reshape Australia's sex discrimination laws in ways that undermine the dignity, privacy and safety of all women.
“Trans people make up less than one per cent of the population, yet they are being made to carry the weight of a divisive and deeply unfair culture war.
"This is a community that already experiences disproportionately high rates of discrimination, violence and exclusion. Instead of strengthening protections for people who need them most, this Bill would strip trans women of basic legal protections while weakening the laws that protect all women from sexism and discrimination.
“It risks dragging LGBTIQ+ and women’s rights backwards, causing more division, more confusion and more harm.”
Executive Director of Fair Agenda, Renee Carr:
"Australian law has long recognised that women are discriminated against because of harmful stereotypes and expectations about who they are and how they should live.
"This Bill doesn't advance women's safety or equality. It strips trans women of basic legal protections while weakening the safeguards against sexism and misogyny that protect all women. It's a step backwards for women's rights."
Director of Trans Justice Project, Jackie Turner:
“Trans people deserve to be protected from discrimination, have the freedom to be ourselves, and feel safe in our communities - just like everyone else.
“In a callous attempt to strip away vital protections for our community, a few politicians are willing to throw into chaos the laws that protect all women from discrimination and sexism.
“This Bill will turn back the clock on gender equality, making our society less fair and less equal - especially if you are a woman.
“Our human rights are deeply connected – when you attack the rights of one group, you put the rights of everyone else at risk.”
Co-Chair of InterAction for Health and Human Rights, Tony Briffa:
“This Bill would force many women born with natural variations of sex characteristics out of the only lives we've ever known. Women that were raised as girls and have always lived, been recognised and accepted as women could suddenly be told they are legally men and excluded from women's spaces. Where are we expected to go?
“Human biology is more complex than this Bill pretends. It ignores the reality of intersex people and replaces it with a rigid definition that simply doesn't reflect the diversity of human bodies.
“This Bill will not protect women. It’s a clumsy attempt to force people into legal categories that has serious unintended consequences for many women and their families.”
More information on the SDA here: https://equalityaustralia.org.au/resources/explainer-5-problems-with-narrowing-the-meaning-of-sex-in-the-sex-discrimination-act-sda/
Contact: Mike Hitch - 0426 812 115
