Defining transgender identity in the Hate Crime and Public Order Bill and beyond (updated December 2020)

This blog can be downloaded as a briefing paper here This blog looks at how the characteristic ‘transgender identity’ is defined in the Hate Crime and Public Order Bill, and in public policy more widely. We argue that a failure…

Domino effects: the implications of the framing the sex question in the 2021 census

The UK is losing robust data on sex and the framing of the sex question in the 2021 census is set to make the situation worse.   The sex question in the 2021 census will ask whether a person is…

From medical assessment to affirmation: legal gender self-declaration in Ireland

Cited by the Scottish Government as its main example of ‘international best practice’, in 2015 the Irish Government passed the Gender Recognition Act. Yet the vast majority of Irish people have little or no awareness of the degree of legislative…

A tale of two letters: whose views count?

Introduction Since November 2018, an intense debate has broken out over whether the sex question in the 2021 census should be framed in terms of self-declared gender identity, legal or biological sex. We have previously argued that we think that…

Scottish Government response to our questions on reforming the Gender Recognition Act

On 6 January 2020 we wrote to the Cabinet Secretary for Social Security and Older People Shirley-Anne Somerville, with a set of questions about the Scottish Government consultation on gender recognition reform and draft Bill (our original letter is shown…

Is the Scottish Government seeking to build consensus on gender recognition reform?

In an interview with STV broadcast on 20 February 2020, Cabinet Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville stated that she is “absolutely determined” to press ahead with reforms to the Gender Recognition Act 2004 (GRA) to allow a person to change their legal…

Comparing the 2004 Act and the Scottish Government draft Bill: what changes with self-declaration?

Introduction The Gender Recognition Act 2004 (GRA) at present has two elements. It specifies what characteristics a person must already have to be entitled to apply for a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC) (i.e. what they must be), and separately, what…

Improving the Gender Recognition Certificate process: a point of consensus?

Introduction Under section 3(3) of the Gender Recognition Act 2004 (GRA) a person applying for a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC) is required to tell the Gender Recognition Panel (GRP) about their past “treatment for the purpose of modifying sexual characteristics”…