Trans sex offenders placed in Scot women’s prisons

Twelve men convicted of sexual or violent crimes were housed in women’s prisons in Scotland in the last 18 months, according to a Freedom of Information (FOI) response.

Eleven of the men have self-declared as female, the other has undergone ‘gender reassignment’ surgery.

The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) is considering making changes to its transgender prison policy that could end the practice of moving men who say they are ‘transitioning’ into women’s accommodation.

Clear evidence

The policy was criticised by the public when it was drawn up in 2014 after it was revealed the SPS had only consulted with trans lobby groups including Stonewall and the Scottish Transgender Alliance.

The SPS has said it will consult more widely in its review, particularly seeking the views of female inmates and prison officers as well as the public.

Dr Kate Coleman, of the campaign group Keep Prisons Single Sex, said: “The evidence clearly indicates that where prisoners of the male sex, no matter how they identify, are held in women’s prisons, women in prison are negatively impacted”.

Kenny MacAskill MP also said that it was “unacceptable that men can identify as women and then seek to be detained in women’s prisons”.

‘Orwellian’

The Scottish Government recently confirmed plans to press ahead with its controversial Gender Recognition Act reforms, despite widespread resistance.

The plans would make it much easier to change legal sex by removing the need to provide any medical evidence, reducing the two-year period to change legal sex to three months and extending ‘sex swaps’ to 16-year-olds.

But MacAskill warned that such policies would make “a complete nonsense of recording crime”, adding “It’s Orwellian how science and reality are being distorted by an ideology.”

Earlier this year, a poll found that the majority of the Scottish public do not share the Scottish Government’s view that making it much easier to change legal sex is an urgent priority.