02-05-2025
Scottish government shelves plans for misogyny law
The Scottish government has shelved plans for a new misogyny law in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling on the definition of a woman.
A bill had long been promised to improve protections for women and girls but ministers said the need to 'navigate all of the issues' arising from the Supreme Court judgment meant there was now not enough time before next year's Holyrood election.
They are instead going to amend existing hate crime legislation to provide protections on the basis of sex.
The Scottish government said it remained committed to ensuring people are protected from misogynistic abuse but it was a 'complex area of policy and law' which required more time to work out where it would apply.
This would include assessing the implications of the Supreme Court ruling that a woman is defined by biological sex for the purposes of equality legislation.
It said there was insufficient time to proceed with the bill in this parliamentary session, but in September it would add the protected characteristic of sex to Scotland's Hate Crime act.
'We have to navigate a way through all of the issues that come out of the Supreme Court judgment,' said John Swinney, Scotland's First Minister.
He added that the government would take any action they can 'during this parliamentary term to tackle misogyny'.
Rachael Hamilton MSP, Scottish Conservative deputy leader, said the misogyny bill was the latest in a 'litany of paused, ditched or botched' policies from Nicola Sturgeon's time as first minister.
Pauline McNeill, Scottish Labour justice spokesperson, said it was 'a shameful broken promise' to Scottish women 'at a time when misogynistic hatred is on the rise'.
For Women Scotland, the campaign group, welcomed the decision to protect women and girls under hate crime legislation but said it was 'really frustrating' that previous opportunities had been missed.
A spokeswoman added: 'The outpouring of misogynistic hatred in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling has demonstrated how necessary this protection is.'
A new misogyny law was promised after an expert group in 2022 backed separate legislation rather than incorporating abuse and violence against women into Scotland's hate crime law.
A 'deeply rooted' problem
The group, led by Baroness Helena Kennedy KC, said this was a better option because women are not a minority, and a 'more fundamental set of responses' were required to address the 'deeply rooted' problem.
The Scottish government proposed creating five new offences in its misogyny bill, including stirring up hatred against women and misogynistic harassment.
Misogyny would also be treated as an aggravating factor in crimes, which could lead to tougher sentencing.
The Scottish government has also confirmed it will not be bringing forward legislation to end conversion therapy this term, and is hoping for a UK-wide solution.
