Latest news with #GenderRecognitionReformAct
The National
2 days ago
- Politics
- The National
Nicola Sturgeon says she should have paused gender reform legislation
The comments came in a wide-ranging ITV News interview with the former First Minister, which is set to air in full on Monday night as she prepares to launch her memoir Frankly later in the week. Sturgeon was first minister when the Scottish Parliament passed its Gender Recognition Reform Act in 2022, which would allow transgender people to self-identify and simplified the requirements to acquire a GRC, before it was blocked by Westminster from becoming law. It has since erupted into an ongoing row, with the Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that under the Equality Act 2010, 'woman' referred to biological sex, and not a transgender woman with a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC). READ MORE: Ross Greer says bullying within Scottish Greens left him hospitalised twice Addressing this, Sturgeon said in the interview: 'I didn't anticipate as much as I should, or engage as much as I should, on some of the concerns that might then be triggered.' She added: 'At the point I knew it was becoming, or felt it becoming, as polarized I should have said, 'Right, okay, let's pause, let's take a step back'. 'I fervently believe that the rights of women and the interests of trans people are not irreconcilable at all. I should have taken a step back and said, 'How do we achieve this?'.' When previously asked about the Supreme Court judgment in May, Sturgeon said: "We are at risk of making the lives of trans people almost unliveable.' She added: "The Supreme Court judgment by definition is the law of the land. The question for me, and I think for a lot of people, is how that is now translated into practice. "Can that be done in a way that protect women and also allows trans people to live their lives with dignity and in a safe and accepted way? I think that remains to be seen. "I think some of the early indications would raise concerns in my mind that we are at risk of making the lives of trans people almost unliveable and I don't think the majority of people in the country would want to see that. "It certainly doesn't make a single woman any safer to do that because the threat to women comes from predatory and abusive men."
Daily Record
27-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Record
Reform must give Holyrood respect as Swinney warns party will 'dismantle devolution'
The Scottish Parliament is the result of decades of determined cross-party campaigning. It took years of concerted effort to make Holyrood a reality. Countless activists helped slowly build public support for an idea that was once considered radical. Despite what some right-wing revisionists may think, the parliament was not opened on a whim by Tony Blair. After the failure of the referendum in 1979, it was possible that Scotland might never get a parliament. But it became, as Donald Dewar said, the 'settled will' of the Scottish people. That desire for power over our own affairs led to an overwhelming majority backing devolution in a second referendum in 1997. It's been 25 years since it began life on the Mound, before moving down the Royal Mile to Holyrood. The parliament has made mistakes along the way, with the massive costs of the Holyrood building an early stumbling block. No public institution can be perfect. Many believe the calibre of MSPs has been poor. And the recent debacle of the Gender Recognition Reform Act proved that sometimes our legislators can get it very wrong. But that does not mean that the Scottish Parliament should simply be scrapped – as has been hinted at by various figures in Nigel Farage's Reform party. John Swinney today warns that Farage will be a threat to devolution if he wins power. The First Minister is right to point out that danger. In putting the Scottish Parliament at risk, Farage is taking a dagger to the heart of Scottish democracy. He must hear a clear message from Scots voters – our parliament is here to stay and no English politician can take it away. Any Reform MSPs returned in next year's Holyrood election must respect the institution they have been elected to serve. The First Minister has described the appalling toll of knife crime victims in Scotland in the last year as 'heartbreaking'. He is right to do so as three young men have lost their lives in acts of savagery that shame our nation. In a revealing Daily Record interview, John Swinney reveals today that he has turned to his own 14-year-old son Matthew for guidance on the scourge of youth violence. All parents could take a leaf out of the First Minister's book on this issue. We need to talk to the young people in our lives, openly and honestly, to try and understand the issues that are driving this epidemic. Only then will we get to grips with it and, hopefully, come up with solutions.
Glasgow Times
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Glasgow Times
Nicola Sturgeon breaks silence on Supreme Court gender ruling
When being interviewed by journalists at Holyrood, she said: "We are at risk of making the lives of trans people almost unliveable.' The Supreme Court ruled that under the Equality Act 2010, 'woman' referred to biological sex, and not a transgender woman with a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC). The former first minister had been confronted by media previously but refused to make any comment on the ruling. She told reporters on Tuesday: "The Supreme Court judgement by definition is the law of the land. "The question for me, and I think for a lot of people, is how that is now translated into practice. "Can that be done in a way that protect women and also allows trans people to live their lives with dignity and in a safe and accepted way? I think that remains to be seen. "I think some of the early indications would raise concerns in my mind that we are at risk of making the lives of trans people almost unliveable and I don't think the majority of people in the country would want to see that. "It certainly doesn't make a single woman any safer to do that because the threat to women comes from predatory and abusive men." Sturgeon was first minister when the Scottish Parliament passed its Gender Recognition Reform Act in 2022, which would allow transgender people to self-identify and simplified the requirements to acquire a GRC, before it was blocked by Westminster from becoming law. Sturgeon added: "I've spent my life campaigning for the protection of women's rights, but I also think it's really important that the tiny number of people who are trans get to live with dignity and in a way that they feel safe and accepted for who they are." More to follow.
ITV News
24-04-2025
- Politics
- ITV News
'It has implications much further than Earlston Primary School' - gender court ruling analysis
Ministers at Holyrood and Westminster may not be able to say what the implications will be from the Supreme Court's ruling on the definition of a woman, but its effect is already being felt in the real world. This week's court order against Scottish Borders Council made it clear that state schools in Scotland must provide single-sex toilets for pupils. The case was brought before the Supreme Court ruling, but the fact its outcome was announced in the following days means it is very much linked. It has implications that reach much further than Earlston Primary School and one council. This case, again, made crystal clear that public bodies have obligations under law that contradict the drift of policymaking in recent years. Every area of public life has been affected by guidance that was aimed at making life easier for trans and non-binary people. The aim - to help a group of people who often feel alienated be more comfortable - might be laudable, but at almost every turn its execution was cack-handed. The controversial Gender Recognition Reform Act ended up being blocked by the previous Conservative UK Government, a decision that was backed by the courts. Unsurprisingly, the Scottish Government confirmed it will no longer be pursuing this legislation in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling despite legal commentators suggesting the judgment will have little effect on the Act. Bloody-mindedness and a refusal to listen to critics led to the shambles of the Isla Bryson case. Bryson raped two women and transitioned to self-identify as a woman after being charged but before conviction and imprisonment in a female prison. Following a backlash, Bryson was transferred to a male prison. Now wider Scottish Government guidance will have to change in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling last week that the definition of a 'woman' in the Equality Act is based on biology. Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville and Health Secretary Neil Gray are meeting the Equalities and Human Rights Commission on Thursday (NOTE: today, wasn't sure on style) to flesh out what alterations now have to be made, particularly around single-sex spaces. This will affect every public body in Scotland and will be a major shift in how public policy operates in Scotland. It will be a major challenge to ministers and officials to ensure they uphold women's rights as has been laid out to them by the law while ensuring that trans people's lives are not made worse. So far, despite their intentions, that has been the ultimate result of government actions.
