The Legislative Council has passed the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Amendment (Sex or Gender Changes) Bill 2024.

The new legislation, once it comes into effect, will remove the antiquated WA Gender Recognition Board and replace it with a new administrative process that allows people to change their gender, birth certificates and other identity documents.

The bill passed its third reading in the Legislative Council on Wednesday night, it will now return to the Legislative Assembly due to the amendments that had been added.

The passage of the bill came after the government enacted Standing Order 125A which allowed the bill to be classified as urgent legislation, limiting the amount of time it could be debated.

The passage of the bill saw fiery debate in the lower house several months ago, and a dragged-out discussion in the legislative council.

Liberal MLC Nick Goiran commented on the way the bill progressed describing it as a “political farse” and the designation of urgent legislation as using a “political battering ram”.

The government’s approach was slammed by the opposition, crossbenchers, community groups and religious groups.

The implementation of the legislation fulfills a promise the Labor government made back in 2017 but has taken years to bring to the parliament.

Greens MLC Brad Pettitt who had hoped to discuss a series of amendments that were supported by the intersex, transgender and gender diverse communities said the government had “guillotined” debate.

“The Cook government’s handling of the passage of this important legislation has been undemocratic and ultimately harmful to the trans, intersex and gender-diverse communities it seeks to protect. 

“While abolition of the Gender Reassignment Board is a win, this bill continues to medicalise trans, intersex and gender-diverse identities by requiring an application to be ‘supported by a statement by a doctor or psychologist certifying that the person has received appropriate clinical treatment’. 

“The trans, intersex and gender-diverse community rightfully wants and deserves the process for legal recognition of gender to allow for full self-identification because medicalisation will continue to perpetuate harm. But the Cook government wasn’t interested in listening to their voices.

“Now, at the eleventh hour, debate will be cut short before amendments drafted in consultation with the community can even be considered” Pettitt said. 

“The Gender Reassignment Board has been a cruel, unnecessary, and humiliating barrier for trans, intersex and gender diverse Western Australians and I am glad that after years of advocacy and activism it is finally being abolished.  

“But this process has been devastating for many and there is still so much work to do to ensure that trans, intersex and gender-diverse Western Australians have the right to self-identify through a demedicalised framework and live their lives free from discrimination.”