The initial bill, released in August, did not clearly define "conscientious objection" when setting out provisions for health professionals, raising concerns for the Australian Medical Association (AMA). The new version makes it clear health workers will not have the right to discriminate against patients based on gender, sexuality or other characteristics. Mr Porter used the example of a GP who did not want to "engage in hormone therapies" for a trans person. "That's fine, but you have to exercise that in a consistent way, so you don't engage in the procedure at all," he told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video The AMA said it was considering its response to the new draft bill, while Equality Australia warned it "still allows for adverse impact on patient health". "Laws that privilege religious views over patient health are unacceptable," chief executive Anna Brown said. The so-called "Folau clause", which was heavily criticised by business and LGBTIQ groups, remains in the new bill. This prevents companies with revenue of at least $50 million from imposing restrictions on employees airing their religious views in their spare time unless it would cause the business "unjustifiable financial hardship".

Mr Porter said the government had now clarified that people's spare time meant "other than in the course of their employment". This meant an office Christmas Party might be classified as work time but a weekend Facebook post was not. The Attorney-General said the submissions so far from larger businesses, calling for the scrapping of the "Folau clause", "weren't terribly persuasive". Loading Many church groups had pushed for an expanded definition of "religious bodies", as they receive protections in the bill including the ability to hire people on the basis of their religion. Religious charities primarily involved in commercial activities were excluded from this definition in the first draft. The new bill will count religious charities registered as "public benevolent institutions" - such as op-shops - as religious bodies, regardless of their involvement in commercial activities.

The new bill also makes clear that religious camps and conference centres will be able to "take faith into account" when deciding whether they provide accommodation to people. Others changes to the bill include a definition of "vilify" and protections for associates of religious individuals, for example people in inter-faith marriages. Many religious groups, including Jewish, Christian and Muslim representatives, said they would take their time to digest the new bill before responding. Christian Schools Australia spokesman Mark Spencer said the second draft showed the government "has been listening to the concerns of faith communities, and other groups, and provides much-needed clarity around a number of areas". This is a bill for all Australians. PM Scott Morrison Shadow attorney-general Mark Dreyfus said Labor would do its own consultation on the second draft bill. "We need to ensure any laws aimed at protecting Australians from discrimination based on religious belief do not create legal uncertainty or compromise existing anti-discrimination protections," he said. Mr Porter said he planned to introduce the bill to Parliament in early 2020, with public feedback on the second draft due on January 31.