The adults are in charge.

Queensland Senator Barry O’Sullivan has asked if he could self-identify as a woman in order to spend all of his smoko break in the women’s bathrooms and use the “ladies’ loo loo”.

The government senator made the comments in Estimates on Wednesday evening, following questioning from Greens Senator Janet Rice about the public service’s implementation of guidelines intended to support transgender people.

Shortly after beginning her questioning, Rice was interrupted by Senator O’Sullivan, who acknowledged he was wading into difficult territory.

“I can’t join in here without getting myself into some sort of trouble,” he said, while explaining that he felt there are genuine questions in this area that need to be answered.

“I definitely don’t want to make light of any of the conversation. It’s quite a serious subject,” he said.

“What would that allow me to do, if I declared that my gender status was…um… female? Does that allow me the freedom of movement … I mean this is a serious question … Can I go into the ladies’ loo loo then?”

Yes, he said loo loo.

O’Sullivan continued: “If you were to find me in the ladies’ change rooms — I’ve declared myself to be a female — and I’m in the ladies’ change rooms. Am I insulated from any punitive action, for that?”

“I started [working] with you on Monday. Tuesday I made a declaration [of gender] and Wednesday, I started spending my smoko in the ladies change room. The shower room.”

The baffled public servants struggled to answer the question, but pointed out that any question of gender diversity and appropriate use of public facilities would be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.

Senator Rice, whose wife Penny is a trans woman, described O’Sullivan’s comments as “extremely disrespectful and offensive” to trans and gender diverse people.

"Too early, girls, too early," says Nats senator Barry O'Sullivan as his ALP and Lib male colleagues start sparring within 30 mins of #agestimates getting underway #auspol — Brett Worthington (@BWorthington_) May 21, 2018

“Senator O’Sullivan was ignorantly and offensively conflating his concerns about predatory behaviour from men with the implementation of the government’s guidelines on recognising sex and gender,” Rice told Junkee. “These guidelines exist to ensure that trans and gender diverse people feel safe to be who they are in the workplace.”

“To mix these two issues is outrageous, and minimises the experience and identities of trans and gender diverse people. A person’s gender identity is not a choice made on a whim in order to tick a form, as he implied.”

After Rice called O’Sullivan disrespectful, the senator said he would sleep well at night.

Senator O’Sullivan declined to comment when contacted by Junkee.