The government’s response to the 2018 public consultation on GRA reform is going to be published this month!
Thirty thousand of us raised our concerns during the consultation and the government has listened. Last month the Sunday Times revealed in a leaked report that Sex Self-ID will not be made law. This follows on from the Minister Liz Truss’s statement to the Women and Equalities Committee stating her plans for the “protection of single‑sex spaces and to “make sure that the under‑18s are protected from decisions that they could make that are irreversible”.
Trans pressure groups have been busy organising protests, letter writing campaigns and speaking in the media to criticise these plans. Let’s make sure our voices get heard too.
You can email Liz Truss at [email protected] to show your support for the rights of women and young people.
Alternatively, we’ve written a ready-made email you can send. Simply fill in the form below and a copy will be automatically sent to Liz Truss.
Dear Liz Truss,
I am writing to say thank you for recognising the need to protect women’s rights and the welfare of young people in any reform of the gender recognition regime.
I welcome your three principles:
Protection of single-sex spaces.
Making sure transgender adults are free to live their lives as they wish without fear of persecution, whilst maintaining checks and balances in the system.
Making sure under 18s are protected from decisions that they could make, that are irreversible in the future
The Equality Act 2010 set out to protect transgender people’s rights against discrimination, such as in employment and as users of services. However the guidance produced by official bodies including the Equality and Human Rights Commission and the Government Equalities Office has over recent years suggested something never intended by this legislation; that some males have a right to ‘self-identify’ into spaces specifically reserved for the female sex. This guidance is not fair or clear for anyone.
I think that male-free spaces for women and girls’ privacy whether in schools, workplaces, universities, gyms, pubs and other public places, as well as women’s refuges, prisons and other specialist services should be unambiguous and not up for individualised negotiation or uncertainty.
The government should urgently review official guidance, including the Equality Act codes of practice, and ensure that misleading guidance which undermines consent is not promoted.
It is also very important that while young people are still developing their decision-making capabilities we protect them from making irreversible decisions. Safeguarding should be paramount in relation to children.
I hope you will confirm that there will not be a shift to “self-identification” as the route to obtaining a Gender Recognition Certificate.
It is time to have a clear and open conversation about how to protect transgender people’s rights without overriding other people’s rights.
Yours sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Your Address]
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