I make a contribution on the Conversion Practices Ban Bill 2024. I begin by noting—for all of the people in my electorate and across the State who have contacted me—that conversion practices are based on the idea that LGBTQ+ people are broken or need fixing, and that is wrong. There is nothing wrong with LGBTQ+ people; they do not need fixing. Conversion practices are dangerous, and there is no room for them in New South Wales. From the outset, the New South Wales Labor Government recognised that this is a complex area of law reform, and it is important to balance prohibiting those harmful practices with protecting things like freedom of expression and freedom of religious belief. I acknowledge that point for all of the people across my electorate and the State who wanted me to note that. There are strong and very polarised views about the reform, but the bill represents a carefully balanced approach that takes into account those views.

This is a New South Wales bill, and it is fit for purpose for our State. The bill provides for a graduated response to LGBTQ+ conversion practices. It is educative and it clearly defines conversion practices and carefully sets out considered exceptions and exclusions. It provides for a civil complaints scheme, and it provides a targeted criminal response for the most serious conversion practices where people have suffered substantial harm. The bill is aimed at stopping conversion practices, be they in a practice, treatment or sustained effort directed toward an individual on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity to suppress or change their sexual orientation or gender identity.

The New South Wales Government made a clear commitment to outlaw LGBTQ+ conversion practices, with the Department of Communities and Justice and NSW Health leading a working group for the reforms. I particularly want to acknowledge the member for Sydney for his important work and advocacy in this space for many years. We, of course, as a government, considered his bill closely during the development process. The bill reflects a legislative response that is suitably tailored to the New South Wales community and legal system on the basis of our in-depth targeted consultation, in which we heard from a wide range of stakeholders. I thank the member for Sydney for engaging with us constructively on this, as we have done on so many issues in the past and as we will again.

Consultation on the bill was wideranging. The Government heard from members of the health, education, youth, legal and government sectors; faith and multicultural organisations; parents' rights and LGBTQ+ community advocacy organisations; and, importantly, people with lived experience. All views were carefully considered in the development of the legislation to ensure that it strikes the right balance, noting that there were often divergent stakeholder views and positions on preferred reform options. What do conversion practices look like? I have been answering this question, over and again, during the past number of months, but I will put it on the record. Conversion practices can include conduct ranging from secular or religious behavioural and talking therapies, formal workshops, camps and programs, spiritual deliverance practices and exorcisms, or abusive aversion therapy such as electroshock therapy or inducing nausea and other forms of physical abuse. It happens. Different forms of conduct can also be used in combination with each other as part of LGBTQ+ conversion practices.

As the Minister for Health noted, studies indicate that LGBTQ+ people in Australia continue to be exposed to conversion practices, and that greater exposure was observed in trans and gender diverse people and people from faith communities. This bill implements the Government's commitment to ban LGBTQ+ conversion practices. This commitment was made because available evidence overwhelmingly demonstrates that these practices are ineffective and cause significant harms for those who are subjected to them. Documented harms include heightened suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in comparison with other LGBTQ+ people not exposed to conversion practices; poor mental health, including depression, anxiety and poor self‑esteem; alienation, loneliness and social isolation, including the loss of support networks; and physical injury where conversion practices use physical or sexual violence, or aversive techniques such as electroshock therapy.

At this point, I acknowledge Craig from the Blue Mountains, who wrote to me, "Given my experiences and struggles with suicide within the church environment, I strongly urge the New South Wales Government to ban all such conversion practices immediately." He went on to explain in some detail about the dark places he went to, which I will not put on the record. This bill is for Craig and for all of those who have been hurt and have suffered. As we know, there are no existing laws in New South Wales that specifically prohibit conversion practices. This means not all conversion practices are currently prohibited, and also that existing laws for conduct such as physical violence are laws of general application and do not specifically recognise this conduct in the context of conversion practices. This bill ensures that conversion practices as a specific class of conduct are prohibited under both civil and criminal law.

To those who have made contact with me—and there are many of you—to express concerns or opposition to the bill, I note that our bill has powerful protections for people of faith that go far beyond our election commitments. The bill protects the expression of a religious belief. It protects religious teachings. It protects the expression that religious beliefs ought to be followed. It protects the right to prayer. It protects discussions between parents and their children about sexuality and gender. It protects the rules of religious orders such as the celibacy of priests. It protects general school rules such as uniform requirements. And, to be clear, the bill does not stop someone from telling a young person not to have sex before marriage and it does not stop someone counselling a married person not to have an affair. I thank all of those from the LGBTQ+ community in the Blue Mountains, particularly the crew from Pink Mountains and the trans teens support group. We see you, we hear you, we celebrate you, and we love you just the way you are. I commend the bill to the House.