Minister James Aylward and Opposition Leader Peter Bevan-Baker. The bill was granted royal assent on November 28 and went into effect immediately. The act is a combination of the legislation of Ontario and that of Nova Scotia, however, Prince Edward Island's legislation has used the age of 18 across the board whereas Nova Scotia's legislation uses the age of 16 for some aspects. In March 2020, the Yukon Government introduced a bill to ban conversion therapy for minors. It was passed and given Royal Assent on 9 November 2020. Intersex rights For Intersex Awareness Day in October 2018, Egale Canada published a statement calling on the Canadian Government to protect the rights of intersex persons, fulfilling "treaty body obligations under international law," and accompanied by a submission to the UN Committee Against Torture. The statement referred to Criminal Code [s. 268(3)], stating that it "allows for parents and medical practitioners to undertake nonconsensual, cosmetic surgeries on intersex infants". In May 2019, the Canadian Bar Association made a similar call. Since 2017, besides male and female, Canadian passports have been available with an "X" sex descriptor. In June 2019, Canadian authorities announced that non-binary people may also apply to have an "X" gender marker. Birth certificates in Canada are issued by provincial and territorial officials. As of 2019, Alberta, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, the Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Yukon allow for a "third gender" option ("X"). Some provinces, namely Ontario and Saskatchewan, also offer citizens the option of not displaying the sex field at all. In January 2021, rights pertaining to the designation of sex in the Quebec register of civil status—for transgender, non-binary and intersex people—were upheld as a result of a ruling by the Quebec Superior Court. Blood and tissue donation There are no restrictions on blood donations specifically from men who have sex with men in Canada. Canada had had a three-month deferral period before men who have sex with men could donate blood since 2019. On April 28, 2022, Health Canada announced that it had accepted a request by Canadian Blood Services to change that policy and eliminate the three-month waiting period for gay and bi men, for donations of both blood and plasma. Instead, Canadian Blood services has implemented a new screening policy for all donors, regardless of sexuality or gender, to identify individuals who have engaged in high-risk sexual activities.