Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill: Section 35 Power

Kirsty Blackman Excerpts

Tuesday 17th January 2023 Commons Chamber

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland (John Lamont)]

A short time ago, the Secretary of State for Scotland made a statement to the House regarding the Government’s decision to exercise a power under section 35 of the Scotland Act 1998 with regard to the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill. For the benefit of Members who were not present at that statement, I shall summarise what action this Government are taking and why.

Today, the Secretary of State is making an order under section 35 of the Scotland Act 1998 preventing the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill from proceeding to Royal Assent. As the Secretary of State said, this is the first time the power has been exercised, and it is not a decision that has been taken lightly. However, it is a decision based on the legislation’s consequences for the operation of reserved matters across Scotland, England and Wales, including on equality legislation.

The Scottish Government’s Bill would introduce a number of changes around gender recognition in Scotland. They include reducing the minimum age at which a person can apply for a gender recognition certificate to 16, and removing the need for a medical diagnosis and evidence of having lived for two years in their acquired gender.

[Kirsty Blackman (Aberdeen North) (SNP)]

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Is it acceptable for the Minister to read out the statement that has already been made, changing the order of some of the sentences?

[Mr Speaker]

It is up to the Minister what he wishes to say.

--- Later in debate ---

[Kirsty Blackman (Aberdeen North) (SNP)]

Let me start with an apology to all the trans people in Scotland who were hoping that they would be able to get the gender recognition certificate that they cannot currently get because they cannot provide thousands of pages of evidence, because they cannot go in front of a panel, and because they cannot obtain the medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria, which the World Health Organisation has said should not be necessary for a certificate. I want to apologise for the fact that we gave them that hope and the UK Government have dashed it again.

We are in a room full of cis people talking about the lives of trans people. That is what we are doing in this room: we are talking about the lives of other people, and about rights that do not affect us in our privileged, entitled position here. I want to know why the UK Government have suddenly decided that they are going to try to protect vulnerable women and children. They did not think like this when they were talking about the implementation of the rape clause, or when they were demonising migrants and refugees. They did not want to protect women and children until today, when it seems that they can suddenly use this wedge issue to attack trans people, and to demonise the Scottish Parliament and the Scottish Government for the decisions that we have taken to try to improve the lives of our trans constituents.

Earlier, when I asked Secretary of State what a gender recognition certificate does, he did not have the faintest clue, yet he has the power to veto this legislation from the Scottish Parliament. I have looked at the statement of reasons, and it contains no reasons for any impact on the lives of women and girls who are not trans. There is no such impact on their lives, because this is a manufactured grievance—the Labour party is absolutely correct about that. It is a grievance manufactured by the Conservatives, who are cynically using the lives of trans people to create this conflict.

A gender recognition certificate does not allow people access to bathrooms or changing rooms, and it does not allow them to change their passports or driving licences; they can do that without a gender recognition certificate. All the certificate does is allow people to live and die in dignity. It allows them to have the correct gender on their death certificates, and it allows their gender to be recognised by pension providers. It is something that trans people need and cannot currently obtain because of the massive barriers erected by the current Act. I am devastated that Conservative Members sitting over there are suggesting that we should even row back on that Act. What we should be doing is making life better for people and improving human rights, not dismantling them.