Following the UK Supreme Court’s ruling that the term “women” in the British Equality Act refers only to biological women, New Zealand First has decided to follow suit.
The party wants to clarify “woman” and “man” in law and proposes a member’s bill to ensure “our country moves away from the woke ideology that has crept in over the last few years”.
New Zealand First wants to see “women” defined in law as “adult human biological female” and “man” defined as “adult human biological male.”
“The purpose of this amendment is to uphold legal certainty, protect the integrity of sex-based rights and ensure that language in law reflects biological reality,” a note in the legislation states.
Because the proposal is a member’s bill, it will need to be pulled from the parliament ballot before being discussed.
Winston Peters says the legislation was “not about being anti-anyone or anti-anything” instead “about ensuring we as a country focus on the facts of biology and protect the term ‘woman’ in law”.
Peters added the legislation was to “ensure our country moves away from the woke ideology that has crept in over the last few years, undermining the protection, progression and safety of women”.
Photo Credit: RNZ
