A senior lawyer has warned that public bodies in Scotland may be breaking the law through their extreme trans-affirming equality, diversity, and inclusion policies.
Joanna Cherry KC accused employers, including the Scottish Government, of pandering to activist organisations rather than applying the law.
Organisations including Police Scotland and the Scottish Prison Service have been criticised for policies which allow people access to single-sex toilets and changing rooms on the basis of self-identification.
‘Inadequate’
Cherry explained to The Herald: “It seems that none of these public authorities have met their duties under the public sector equality duty in relation to these policies.
“When updating their trans and non-binary equality and inclusion policy, the Scottish Government appears to have carried out a wholly inadequate equality impact assessment and ignored the Workplace (Health, Safety, and Welfare) Regulations 1992 in relation to the provision of toilet facilities.”
The former SNP MP continued: “Public authorities taking advice from activist organisations rather than following the law leave themselves vulnerable to legal challenge.”
Policy analysis group Murray Blackburn Mackenzie agreed, adding: “These groups have promoted the unregulated introduction of gender self-identification as a basis for policy across the public sector, without due regard for relevant legislation.”
Scottish Government
The Scottish Government’s new Trans and Non-Binary Equality and Inclusion Policy states that staff who identify as the opposite gender “should choose to use the facilities they feel most comfortable with”. It is made clear that a Gender Recognition Certificate is not needed, but that it is solely based on self-ID.
Scottish Conservative deputy leader Rachael Hamilton recently commented: “Women and girls will be dismayed that John Swinney continues to ignore their rights and safety by remaining wedded to Nicola Sturgeon’s reckless self-ID policy.”
She added: “Gender self-ID, by its very definition, comes at the expense of the right of biological females to access single-sex spaces – and the First Minister knows it.”
Only two genders
In late February, Californian man Ryan Castellucci lost his appeal against a previous ruling rejecting his claim that the UK was legally obliged to recognise his sex as ‘non-binary’.
Upholding the High Court decision, Lord Justice Singh stated: “The concept of ‘gender’ in the Gender Recognition Act, when referred to in the context of the domestic law route, is confined to two genders.”
Lord Singh referred to the Government’s position that “no changes were currently needed and more research and consultation would be needed before any changes were contemplated”.
NI health trusts issue ‘trans pass’ for women’s toilets and changing rooms
Absurd hospital form asks for babies’ gender identity
NHS Scotland drops diktat to ‘validate bearded men who claim to be women’