Holmes Mackillop director says open debate on legal definition of a woman should be encouraged not shut down

Commenting on next month’s For Women Scotland vs Scottish Ministers, a landmark Supreme Court case on the legal definition of a woman, Holmes Mackillop director Karen Condie says open debate should be encouraged, not shut down.

With Amnesty International, the Equality and Human Rights Commission, Scottish Lesbians, and Sex Matters granted permission to take part in the Supreme Court case, Ms Condie has voiced her support to For Women Scotland’s challenge to the Scottish Government’s previous guidance on the definition of a woman for the purposes of its 2018 Act to address gender representation on public boards.

For Women Scotland is a grassroots women’s group founded amid growing unease about how women’s rights would be affected by the Scottish Government’s plans to reform the Gender Recognition Act to allow for self-declaration of sex.

“The original definition did not include a requirement that the person had a gender re-assignment certificate, and they didn’t have to be undergoing or have undergone a gender re-assignment process,” said Ms Condie.

“It therefore could have been open to abuse for the simple reason that it was too wide and too vague, aside from the issue the court addressed on whether the Scottish Parliament had the right to legislate in these terms.

“In the earlier 2022 challenge by For Women Scotland, the Court of Session agreed the definition was unlawful and it resulted in the Scottish Government revising its guidance and it’s this new guidance which is now under attack.”

Ms Condie notes that the new guidance is, however, narrower, referring directly to the definition of a woman under the Equality Act 2010 and to a person who has a Gender Recognition Certificate recognising their gender as female.

“So far the court has found that this revised definition of a woman for the purposes of this new legislation is lawful,” she said.

“It has been and remains a heated and often toxic debate setting parties fearful of the erosion of hard-won biological women’s rights against those fighting for the rights of trans people.

“The repercussions of voicing opinion have silenced many, including many in the legal profession, which is sad to see because open debate should be encouraged, not shut down.”

ENDS

For further information please contact on Karen Condie on tel 0141 226 4942