Email to the Members of the Tasmanian Parliament, dated 19 August 2026
Dear Members of the Tasmanian Parliament,
As the period for submissions on the Greens’ Conversion Practices Prohibition Bill 2026 has now closed, we write to draw your attention to a serious concern regarding transparency.
We have been in contact with a number of national advocacy organisations, including LGB Alliance Australia and AAWAA, as well as community leaders, parents and academics. All have expressed deep concern about the apparent lack of commitment from the Greens to make the submissions publicly available. These groups and individuals engaged with the process in good faith. In the spirit of the transparency that the Greens routinely demand of the Tasmanian Government, we request that they now publish all submissions received so that they can be properly analysed and scrutinised by the public. We have attached some of the submissions for your perusal.
We further urge the Government to ensure that any further consideration of this legislation involves genuine stakeholder consultation with the Tasmanian community, including regional public hearings, before any bill is tabled.
The Greens’ Bill goes well beyond previous recommendations in this area. It would expose individuals accused of “coercion” practices to civil or criminal proceedings, with a maximum prison term of 21 years.
In a submission on the Bill, Emeritus Professor of Law Patrick Parkinson describes it as “deeply flawed.” He writes:
“There has never been a well-documented issue about therapy concerning ‘gender identity’ that has caused significant harm. The only issue has been debate about the role of psychotherapy in treating gender dysphoria or incongruence. On this issue, medical practitioners differ. That [psychotherapy] treatment, which some call ‘conversion therapy’, is now the mainstream option for gender dysphoric minors in Scandinavia, Britain and elsewhere, following expert medical reviews of the evidence for the efficacy of hormonal treatments in addressing gender dysphoria.
The Parliament of Tasmania should not put its thumb on the scale on what is an intense debate in the medical and mental health professions internationally.”
Tasmania should not repeat the mistakes made during the passage of the sex self-identification legislation. That process was fast-tracked and no regional consultations were conducted. There was no risk assessment of these laws, and known adverse impacts from other jurisdictions were ignored. The consequences of these failures have included a chilling effect on parental rights, professional ethics, freedom of speech and freedom of association. Our dossier on these impacts, containing often distressing testimonies that document them is publicly available on our website.
We therefore request that proper and meaningful consultation be undertaken before this Bill is tabled and debated, or before any similar legislation proceeds in any form.
Yours sincerely,
Dr. Elizabeth Caballero
Retired General Practitioner
President | Women Speak Tasmania
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