Women's Rights: Gender Recognition

(asked on 8th November 2021) - View Source

Question

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord True on 1 November (HL3551), how the rights of biological women will be affected if they are included statistically in the same category with biological men who identify as women.


This question was answered on 16th November 2021

There is currently no harmonised standard on collecting data on sex across Government. However, the Office for Statistics Regulation has published draft guidance on what to consider when collecting and reporting data on sex in official statistics. The Government Statistical Service is also looking at developing guidance for public bodies on the collection of data on sex and gender using harmonised standards.

While there is currently no robust estimate on the size of the transgender population in the UK, existing evidence suggests that this population is small. It has been tentatively suggested that approximately 200,000-500,000 transgender people live in this country. On this basis, our assessment is that the different approaches considered by government departments for the collection of sex and/or gender data are unlikely to have a large effect on national data sets.

The Government believes that transgender people should be free to live and prosper in modern Britain. We are also absolutely committed to championing the rights of women and girls and are proud of our world-leading legislative framework of rights. Data does not directly impact on individuals’ rights, rather policy development is rightly informed by a strong understanding and engagement with data and evidence. The Government believes that all people should have an equal opportunity to succeed in life, regardless of their sex, gender or background.

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