Meeting of the Parliament 27 October 2022
Perhaps it is being a bit brutal on the views of the committee. However, two of us—my colleague Pam Gosal and I—think that the legislation should be paused until the Cass review is published in full, because that landmark review notes that a young person’s gender identity may remain in flux until their mid-20s. That point was backed up by written and oral evidence in the committee.
Without addressing that evidence, which was dismissed out of hand, with the cabinet secretary failing to acknowledge any opposition to her view on that point, this part of the bill has left so many unanswered questions and I believe that the opportunity represented by the Cass review to gain clarity has been spurned. That was deeply irresponsible of the committee members who chose to do that.
As Dr Cass made clear, social transition is not a neutral undertaking. Is Parliament really going to pretend that changing a teenager’s legal status from one sex to another is?
There is so much more to cover in this debate, but in my remaining time I want to highlight some other unanswered questions. The committee’s work exposed many of those, and answered few. I have talked about the effect of the bill on the Equality Act 2010. Perhaps the courts will give us some clarity next month, but I have not even begun to discuss the cross-border anomalies that have been highlighted by the Equality and Human Rights Commission, the extension of overseas recognition that is associated with the bill or the impact on marriage and civil partnerships.
With regret, I believe that the bill is a mess. It is trying to help, but the unintended consequences for women and girls, vulnerable young people and the trans people are deeply alarming, and the divisive nature of the issue has been handled poorly.
Presiding Officer, I know that you are looking at me and indicating that I should close. I have so much to say, but I will conclude. It is crucial that we get the bill right. The SNP Government needs to start listening to the legitimate concerns of women and the Scottish public. So far, there is little evidence that it has done so.
15:26