NSW Government responds to Parental Rights Bill

Published 23 March 2022

ADNSW has welcomed the news that the NSW Government will not support One Nation MP Mark Latham’s Bill to ban discussion of gender diversity in classrooms, saying it could cause 'targeted discrimination' against trans students.

The government's response is in line with ADNSW's submission (PDF , 235.2 KB) which outlined concerns about the effect of the Bill on discrimination against transgender and gender diverse people in the NSW education system, and on efforts to reduce that discrimination.

In its response, the NSW Government said it does not support the provisions of the Education Legislation Amendment (Parental Rights) Bill 2020 for four reasons: 

• Many aspects of the Bill are enacted through current legislation, through Department of Education (the Department) current practice, and are being enhanced through a new Departmental parental engagement strategy.
• Some aspects of the Bill are operationally impossible, such as defining a coherent set of community ‘core values’ agreed upon by all parents.
• The Bill may lead to targeted discrimination against a marginalised community which already experiences poorer mental health and wellbeing outcomes.
• Other provisions may impact schools’ legal obligations to protect and support all students. 

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