Meeting of the Parliament 20 June 2019
I recognise the history that Scottish Labour has on equality issues in general, including on this one. Parliament, too, can be exceptionally proud of the work that we have done on those issues. Given that history, I hope that we can find a way to move forward in consensus on this issue.
The criminalisation of false declarations is, of course, an exceptionally important aspect of this, and it is the basis on which I hope that people can have faith and trust in the system.
On the question of false declaration, and on other questions, I do not come to the chamber with all the answers today. Although I am putting forward the Government’s proposals, it is very much an open consultation through which the direction of travel and the destination of the changes to, and reform of, the Gender Recognition Act 2004 will be set. The details of how we undertake that reform, including around false declarations, are important and need to be set out. We have tried to do that in the work that we have done to ensure that there is a period of reflection and that a person has to make a statutory declaration in front of a notary public, as well as in setting a very strong prison sentence for a false declaration. However, if there is other work that we can consider, I am more than happy to do so.
My comments on the Equality Act 2010 and on women’s safe spaces were based on what is in the 2010 act, which is reserved and which we will not ask the UK Government to change. Indeed, based on my discussions with the UK Government, it has no intention of changing it. I hope that my statement provided reassurance that women’s safe spaces will not be changed by our proposals. It is important that we carry out an equality impact assessment to consider the changes that the proposed reforms will make, but they will not be around the exemptions for single-sex services.
We have not decided on the make-up of working groups. However, I take the point that it is important that I listen to the trans community, to people who identify as non-binary, to women’s groups and so on. On the question of how we will do that, again, if Pauline McNeill has specific suggestions, I am more than happy to discuss them later, either in person or through correspondence.