This Member's bill seeks to define “woman” as “an adult human biological female” and “man” as “an adult human biological male”, with the stated aim of ensuring clarity and consistency in New Zealand law. It is still before Parliament.
A member's bill from NZ First MP Jenny Marcroft that would amend the Legislation Act 2019 to add standard definitions used across New Zealand statutes: 'woman' would mean 'an adult human biological female' and 'man' 'an adult human biological male', applying regardless of a person's gender identity.
Supporters — NZ First, National and ACT — say it would give the law clarity and consistency and protect sex-based rights and single-sex spaces in areas such as sport and healthcare. Opponents — Labour, the Greens and Te Pāti Māori — say it would exclude and stigmatise transgender and intersex New Zealanders and cut against existing law that lets people change the sex recorded on their birth certificate. The Attorney-General's report also flagged that, because the definitions cover only 'adults', they could sit awkwardly with the Bill of Rights Act's protection against age discrimination.
See the Parliament.nz ↗ site for the full bill.