How the debate over trans rights is splitting the SNP
The toxicity around the Scottish government’s Gender Recognition Reform Bill could threaten support for the independence cause.
Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images
Demonstrations outside the Polish Consulate in Edinburgh to protest against the arrest of a transgender activist in Poland, 10 August 2020
Beyond the securing of a second independence referendum, the greatest challenge facing the Scottish government in the current session is the delivery of its contentious Gender Recognition Reform Bill.
The bill, which would allow trans people to self-identify as whichever gender they choose without a medical diagnosis, was introduced in 2016. But it had such a polarising effect it was delayed by way of a second – as-yet unpublished – consultation.