"Mother" is the correct term.

I have to agree, not something of any great concern in the broad scheme of things. Maybe the day will come when newly hatched humans, their birthing parent will be a test tube, until then nothing to worry ourselves with.

In my wife's culture having children named after you, refereed to as a "name sake", is a great honour. The protocol is for the mother or her mother to approach the person and ask permission to use their name. Such children are considered extra special by the named. My wife has seven or eight such girls.

In Cook Island custom, children often end up with a very long name, as protocol dictates the inclusion of the first name of at least the two grandmothers/grandfathers and the names of some aunties and uncles as well.

Unsurprisingly, disloyal dimwit and Australian flag-hater, Adam Bandt has taken issue with Bill Shorten's admirable support for women to be called mothers with this tweet:

"As leaders we have a duty to do the right thing despite culture warrior tabloids. “Birthing parent” includes LGBTQ+ people. It does not exclude anyone. I strongly encourage @billshortenmp to consult widely and reconsider this intervention."

Bandt is the one who needs to "consult widely".

ttbn, who was in government when this form was drawn up, I would suggest it was the Coalition. If you were pregnant and wanted to be refereed to as the "Birthing Parent", so be it, if you want "Mother" so be that. BUT no one should expect every form in every government department to be worded to accommodate every sensibility in society.

A far bigger issue for me is the right of gay people to have or adopt children. On that subject our niece and her partner in NZ have adopted 5 "whanau children", (that's children from within the extended family) over the past 10 years. They have proven to be excellent parents, providing the love and care those kids would never have got from their "mother" or "birthing parent".

Forgot to mention the silliness of Herr Bandt’s 'inclusion' comments. No matter what the alphabet mob does or thinks in their spare time, only a woman, a mother, can bear a child, and only a man, a father, can do the impregnating.

The slight improvement in their vote has sent the Greens even madder, and the depth of their madness will become more and more apparent over the next three years

Shorten has indicated that he will not tolerate extreme nonsense. Albanese has warned the Greens about their extreme emissions waffle (his own is extreme enough).

Given there is very little difference between the government and the opposition these days, it shouldn't be hard for Labor to make a few concessions and produce legislation that the Coalition and the less screwy members of the cross bench wouldn't find too hard to swallow; the lunatics could be frozen out.

Australia is heading down a very dangerous road, and this is the time for mainstream politicians to work together more than they usually do. Get rid of the Green Blight, once and for all.