UK Government Plans to Block Scottish Parliament’s Gender Recognition Reform Bill
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Following the Scottish Parliament passing the Gender Recognition Reform Bill with an overwhelming majority in December, the UK Government are now considering plans to block the mandate to administer the Bill.
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According to reports by Trans in the City, the Bill will align Scotland with multiple nations around the world, including Ireland, Australia, Canada and New Zealand in solidarity with the transgender community. It will ensure that trans and non-binary people are respected and treated with dignity, by making the application for a gender recognition certificate more accessible and less degrading. It will also recognize trans people as their authentic selves throughout their lives, in marriage, work and in death.
Despite the Bill having no impact on the UK Equality Act (2010), nor any effect on women’s equality or rights, the UK Government are nevertheless considering plans to block the mandate from coming into effect. This follows on from their decision to end recognition of Gender Recognition Certificates (GRCs) from trans-supporting countries. This makes it more difficult for trans and non-binary people to change their assigned gender at birth through self-determination, indicating steps backwards for the UK in regards to LGBTQ+ equality.
This is one of many examples of the UK Government failing to provide support or equal treatment to the transgender community in recent years. When initial plans to put a stop to conversion therapy practices in the UK were announced, transgender and gender-related therapy procedures were exempt from the ban. Only as a result of an outraged public reaction and campaigns are trans people now being considered as part of the overall ban on conversion therapy practices. The UK Government’s continued mistreatment of the trans community provides ammo to transphobic and trans-exclusionary groups to also mistreat the community, perpetuating negative stereotypes and false narratives that suggest that transgender people pose a threat to society.
Trans in the City reports statistics that the UK has been criticized by international organizations focused on human rights, both for its continued anti-trans narratives and for allowing trans and non-binary hate crimes to rise by 332% in the last five years alone. The NGO Human Rights Watch recently suggested that if the UK Government does not change its treatment of the community, it could be placed on a list of countries that abuse trans people, rather than providing a safe space and protecting their human rights.
The current decisions being made by the UK Government with regards to the transgender community do not reflect a society with the intention to progress. Social justice, business success and communal morale will all continue to decline, with no positive outcome for the UK public or the trans community abroad, unless action is taken and tactics are diverted. If the UK wishes to thrive socially, economically, and morally, it must put transgender equality and rights at the forefront of its future focus.
UK LGBTQ+ charity Stonewall have responded by asking members of the public to contact their MPs, urging them to reconsider or challenge the UK Government's anti-trans stance. You can find your local MP's contact information via the Stonewall website.
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