As part of its preparation for the 2021 Scotland census, National Records of Scotland (NRS) are planning to commission testing which looks at the effect of offering different forms of accompanying guidance for the sex question. The sex question itself will be binary, and simply ask if a person is male or female. The guidance … Continue reading Proposals to test the census sex question guidance miss the point

This post brings together material relating to Losing Sight of Women’s Rights: the unregulated introduction of gender self-identification as a case study of policy capture in Scotland, available here (open access) in Scottish Affairs Vol 28 (3). Authors’ statement We share the view of Professors Cordelia Fine, Peter Singer and others, that the definition and interpretation of “sex” and “gender” in … Continue reading Losing Sight of Women’s Rights: article for Scottish Affairs

27 June 2019 Consultation with stakeholders and question testing In its Stage One Report, the CTEEA Committee noted that the ‘lack of early engagement with a range of groups and individuals, including a broad range of women’s groups, to be a serious deficiency in the process of consultation on the sex, gender identity and transgender … Continue reading Scotland’s 2021 Census: consultation and question development

20 June 2019 We believe that a more measured, evidence-based and inclusive approach to reforming the Gender Recognition Act 2004 (GRA) will result in better policy and legislative outcomes, for all affected groups. The Scottish Government needs to address the existing evidence gaps and provide clarity on how it expects its proposals to affect the … Continue reading MBM statement on GRA reform

  Introduction The main purpose of the Census (Amendment) (Scotland) Bill is to introduce two new, voluntary questions on sexual orientation and transgender identity/status. These changes are not controversial and were agreed at Stage 2. The Scottish Government also wishes to change the sex question, to capture both sex and gender identity in a single … Continue reading Census (Amendment) (Scotland) Bill: MBM Stage 3 Briefing

Recorded crime statistics allows stakeholders, policy-makers and researchers to analyse and monitor offending trends, develop our understanding of offending behaviours, and to target resources and services. To ensure these statistics are valid, reliable and consistent, the data criteria of what is being measured needs to be clearly defined. However, for the purposes of collecting data … Continue reading MBM statement on recording in the Scottish Criminal Justice System

The Census (Amendment) (Scotland) Bill will set an important precedent for how sex (biological or legal) is understood as a policy and legal category in Scotland, and carries significant implications for the future operation of the Equality Act 2010 (see here). Decision-making on the sex question in the 2021 census is also likely to set … Continue reading Q&A on the Census (Amendment) (Scotland) Bill