Minns Backs Down and Restores “Mothers” to NSW Parliament’s Breastfeeding Policy
NSW Premier Chris Minns has agreed to put “mother” and “women” back into the state Parliament’s breastfeeding policy, after a public backlash over a rewrite that replaced them with “parent” and “lactating parent”. It is a win for common sense. But the campaign behind the change reaches well beyond one document.
Common Sense Prevails in Parliament
The updated seven-page policy on breastfeeding support for parliamentary employees had swapped references to women and mothers for terms such as “parent”, “carer” and “lactating parent”. Opposition Leader Kellie Sloane attacked the change on Wednesday. She argued that it robbed women of recognition for something unique to them, and she pointed out that only women breastfeed. She was preparing a motion for Thursday the 22nd of October, when the Premier moved first.
Asked in Parliament by shadow finance minister Monica Tudehope, who was holding her infant son, whether he supported the change, Mr Minns said the terminology was “strange”. He said these documents should use “mother” and “breastfeeding”, that this is what the public expects, and that state government guidelines of a similar nature will reflect that wording from now on. The policy gives eligible employees up to two paid 30-minute lactation breaks a day. What was at stake was the language.
Who Is Pushing This?
This was not one careless drafter. The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine’s 2021 position statement told its readers that replacing “mother” with terms like “lactating person” is appropriate in many settings. The same statement admitted that such terms may not be easily understood by people with low literacy or those reading in a second language. These are the very women who most need plain words.
In Australia, the Australian Breastfeeding Association (ABA) accepted a reported $20,000 from Rainbow Families to help produce a booklet titled Breastfeeding, Chestfeeding and Human Milk Feeding. The ABA says the booklet is only for one-to-one conversations. As we reported in July, counsellors who kept saying “mother” were investigated, and five were sacked.
In 2022, a conference abstract describes a midwives’ guide to gender-inclusive language, developed in partnership with Rainbow Families. It cites the NSW LGBTQIA+ strategy as grounds for the change. In another instance, the Feminist Legal Clinic reported that the Australian National University’s Gender-Inclusive Handbook encouraged staff to say “chestfeeding” instead of “breastfeeding”.
“Parent” Is Not a Neutral Word
Breastfeeding is something only mothers do. Swapping “mother” for “parent” does not include anyone. It deletes the one doing the feeding from a document written for her.
The movement’s own bodies seem to know this. The ABA, even after taking that donation, has said its national material for the public still speaks of pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers. Mothers know what the word means, and they do not need it replaced by a committee or by transgender activists.
This Win Is Not the End
The Parliament policy is not the only one. The NSW Government’s Lactation and Work Policy was issued on 7 November 2025 and replaced two older breastfeeding policies. It speaks of “lactating employees”. The 2014 Treasury policy it replaced spoke of “lactating mothers”. That change happened under the Minns Government.
The Premier has now said that similar guidelines will go back to “mother”. We will be watching to see whether the 2025 whole-of-government policy is corrected, or whether this was a temporary retreat to avoid embarrassment.
What You Can Do Now
This result happened because people spoke up. However, the transgender lobby still has a grip on the definition of woman in federal law. If you believe men are men and women are women, sign our petition to restore the biological definition of woman and remove gender ideology from our federal Laws. Click here to sign.
Last updated: 25 October 2026 22:59