Have Your Say: Gender Recognition Act Reform

Hey everyone, Rebecca here (Policy and Research Officer at LGBT Health and Wellbeing). As I am sure many within our community are aware, the Scottish Government are currently in the process of amending the 2004 Gender Recognition Act (GRA). The Scottish Parliament have opened their Call for Views on the proposed Gender Recognition Reform (GRR) Bill, allowing the public the chance to detail and submit their opinions/thoughts on the Bill. The deadline for responses is 16th May.

As it stands, the GRR Bill will introduce new criteria for applicants who wish to get a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC). The aim of the Bill is to make the process easier and less dehumanising for trans people, reducing the time period applicants are required to live in their acquired gender from two years to three months. The Bill at present will also remove the requirement for a medical diagnosis and medical evidence to obtain a GRC, hopefully making the process more affordable and accessible. At LGBT Health we support reforming the GRA, and believe that proposed changes will positively impact the lives of many trans people here in Scotland.

At present the draft Bill proposes the GRA:

  • remove the requirement for medical evidence
  • remove the Gender Recognition Panel from the process – applications will be made instead to the Registrar General for Scotland
  • reduce the period that applicants must live in their acquired gender from 2 years to 3 months
  • introduce a mandatory 3-month reflection period
  • reduce the minimum age for applicants from 18 to 16
  • introduce a new duty on the Registrar General to report on an annual basis, the number of applications for GRCs and the number granted.

Much to the disappointment of LGBT organisations across Scotland, the GRA Bill will not include legal recognition for non-binary people. We believe the Bill can be best understood to be a step towards achieving trans equality. At LGBT Health, we are committed to working to achieve equality in law for non-binary people. There is an opportunity within the detailed response to express discontent at the Bill’s exclusion of non-binary people, our organisational response will do so and will highlight that equality must include all trans people.

The purpose of this blog post is to encourage all of our community members who are in support of reform to complete the Short Survey Response on the GRA Bill. This consists of seven yes/no questions and one open question where respondents can add any additional comments. If you are unsure about the Bill, or some of the questions asked in the Call for Views, please see this guidance by Scottish Trans Alliance (STA).

I am very happy for folks to reach out to me to discuss the Bill, our organisational response, or for support in submitting a personal response. I can be contacted via email at rebecca@lgbthealth.org.uk or via phone on 0754 173 9819.

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