Rishi Sunak said the ‘impact’ of the reforms must be understood (Picture: Getty Images Europe)
Rishi Sunak has said he is ‘concerned’ about the ways in which Scotland’s gender recognition reforms could impact the rest of the UK.
The Prime Minister baulked when asked whether he would, for the first time in the nearly 25 years of devolution history, block a piece of Scottish law.
The legislation in question is the Gender Recognition Reform Act which simplifies the process by which a trans person legally changes their gender.
Amid increasingly strained relations between Westminster and Holyrood, Sunak met with First Minister Nicola Sturgeon in Inverness for his first official visit.
Sunak told BBC’s Good Morning Scotland radio show yesterday: ‘Obviously, this is a very sensitive area and I know there were very robust debates and exchanges on it as the bill was passing in Scotland.
‘But what I am concerned about is the impact of the bill across the United Kingdom and as is entirely standard the UK government will take advice on that.
‘The fact you are asking these questions demonstrates that there might be impacts that we need to be aware of and understand the impacts of them.’
Rishi Sunak and Nicola Sturgeon have been at toe-to-toe over whether Scotland should remain in the UK (Picture: PA)
In the tinderbox moment of Scotland’s ties with the UK – as Sturgeon eyes up an independence referendum – critics have accused Sunak of playing with matches.
Jayne Ozanne, a former LGBTQ+ advisor to the government, told Metro.co.uk that Sunak needs to get his priorities in order.
Ozanne said: ‘I believe Mr Sunak should be far more “concerned” about the constitutional crisis that he will unleash if he tries to block the Scottish gender reforms, which has been one of the most heavily scrutinised bills in years and has the support of all the major Scottish women’s charities.
‘He should also, of course, be extremely concerned about the fear he is creating amongst the trans community and the impact this is all having on UK’s international LGBT+ reputation.
‘But only time will tell if that is something his administration cares about.’
Felix Fern, who co-founded the group Trans Activism UK, added that the UK government once considered similar changes to those Holyrood just passed.
Sturgeon first proposed the gender recognition reforms six years ago (Picture: PA)
‘The Conservatives promised us a reformation of the Gender Recognition Act (GRA) back in 2017 and, despite remaining in power, have failed to deliver this promise,’ they said.
Under Boris Johnson, the government scrapped plans to reform the GRA and introduce self-identification, which would have let people legally be the gender that they say they are without the need for medical requirements.
‘To now air doubts over Scotland’s excruciatingly well-scrutinised reformation is both hypocritical and frankly insulting to all those the Conservatives have harmed over the last 12 years with this sort of negligence,’ Fern added.
‘Instead of caving into dangerous fear-mongering nonsense, and in turn, spreading that fear with his faux “concerns”, he should be committed to delivering the promises that we are owed.’
Passed just before Christmas in a 86-39 vote, the gender reform bill changes how trans people can obtain a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC).
Scotland’s GRA reforms slashed the amount of time it takes for trans people to obtain a GRC (Picture: PA)
The reform lowered the age someone can apply for one from 18 to 16 and binned the need for a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria.
The time required for an applicant to prove they have lived in their ‘acquired’ gender has also been slashed from two years to three months – or six months for those aged 16 and 17.
None of the changes impact gender recognition law in England, Wales or Northern Ireland – governed by the 2004 Gender Recognition Act.
Downing Street has insisted no ‘final decision’ has been made on whether ministers will use Section 35 of the Scotland Act to prevent this from happening.
If the UK government has ‘reasonable grounds’ to do so, Section 35 allows ministers to prevent Scottish law from getting rubber-stamped by the King within 28 days.
Whitehall sources told Huffington Post that this could very well happen next Wednesday.
LGBTQ+ activists fear Badenoch may introduce a so-called ‘trans travel ban’ (Picture: EPA)
According to the Census, trans people make up only 0.5% of the population in England and Wales.
Yet trans people face disproportionate problems, from years-long waiting lists for NHS gender-affirming healthcare to increased rates of bullying among youth, risk of suffering a hate crime and experiencing negative mental health.
It comes after UK equalities minister Kemi Badenoch announced what LGBTQ+ campaigners have dubbed a ‘trans travel ban’.
Badenoch announced her office is reviewing the list of countries and territories whose process for changing gender on legal documents is recognised by the UK.
This could include countries like Canada, Australia and New Zealand where, Badenoch said, the law isn’t as ‘rigorous’ as in the UK.
Stonewall has warned: ‘This sends a message that the UK Government sees trans people as a threat to be contained, not citizens to be respected.’
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‘Sunak should be more “concerned” about the constitutional crisis that he will unleash if he blocks the bill.’
