ForWomenScotland (FWS) announced earlier this week that they are seeking leave to appeal against the judgement in their case against the Scottish Government. Just as the Scottish Parliament went into recess for the election, Lady Wise found that the Scottish…
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A tale of two letters revisited
The Herald on Sunday this week reported that “more than 300 scientists are calling for the Scottish Government ... to resist attempts from campaigners to change the guidance or question around sex” in next year’s census. The call was made…
MBM statement on the Hate Crime and Public Order Bill
Today MSPs are likely to pass into law one of the most contentious pieces of legislation considered in the lifetime of the Scottish Parliament. Last May, we wrote of our surprise that such controversial proposals – which did not feature…
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Stage 3 briefing on Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Bill
Circulated to MSPs on 8 March 2021 (also available as a PDF: Stage 3 MSP briefing final) …
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MBM review of the ONS paper ‘Methodology for decision making on the 2021 Census sex question concept and associated guidance’
MBM review of the ONS paper ‘Methodology for decision making on the 2021 Census sex question concept and associated guidance’ Less than six weeks before the date of the 2021 census in England and Wales, the Office for National Statistics…
Closed doors and closing down debate: policy capture in the Hate Crime Bill
The Stage 3 debate on the Hate Crime and Public Order Bill will take place in the Scottish Parliament on Wednesday 10 March. The Bill has had an exceptionally difficult passage to date, prompting criticism from a range of organisations,…
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The thin blue line: What inadequate protection for freedom of expression means in practice
This blog summarises why the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Bill needs to provide clearer protection for freedom of expression than is currently proposed by the Scottish Government. Some commentators have suggested that the Bill will criminalise making basic…
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Time to fight for the principle of collecting data on biological sex
Today, the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) has published draft guidance entitled ‘Collecting and reporting data about sex in official statistics’. The guidance sets out what producers should consider when collecting and reporting data about sex, to meet the expected…
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Response to emergency consultation on protection of freedom of expression in the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Bill
Our response to the Justice Committee's emergency consultation on freedom of expression in Bill is provided below. A PDF version of the briefing can be downloaded here. The Issue Our concern is whether the law will provide a clear point…
Was the sex question in the 2011 census ‘self-identified’?
1. Introduction Less than six weeks before the date of the 2021 census in England and Wales, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) published the guidance which will accompany the compulsory sex question. The guidance is of critical importance…
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