Transgender people can still be excluded from single-sex toilets after Government say there will be no change to law
The Government Equalities Office has said it has "no intention" of changing the law that allows single-sex toilets and changing rooms
TRANSGENDER people can still be excluded from using single-sex spaces including toilets and changing rooms, the Government has said.
The Government Equalities Office has said it has "no intention" of changing the law that allows single-sex toilets, changing rooms and other same-sex spaces.
In the statement, the Government Equalities Office said: "Advancing the rights of trans people does not have to compromise women's rights".
But campaigners have said the male and female only spaces discriminate against trans people.
The Government statement said: "We are clear we have no intention of amending the Equality Act 2010, the legislation that allows for single-sex spaces. Any Gender Recognition Act reform will not change the protected characteristics in the Equality Act nor the exemptions under the Equality Act that allow for single and separate-sex spaces.
"Providers of women-only services [can choose not to] provide services to trans individuals, provided it is objectively justified on a case-by-case basis. The same can be said about toilets, changing rooms or single-sex activities. Providers may exclude trans people from facilities of the sex they identify with, provided it is a proportionate means of meeting a legitimate aim."
The government statement came in to a launched by Amy Desir of Man Friday - a group lobbying against self-identification with a particular gender - which called for consultation with women on proposals to enshrine gender-identity in law.
Government ministers are preparing to announce a consultation on the Gender Recognition Act later this summer.
Previously the Government said reform would remove the need for a doctor's diagnosis to allow adults to change their gender.
But yesterday's statement says the current process for gaining a gender recognition certificate "is not working well for the people it is designed for", adding: "That does not necessarily mean we are proposing self-declaration of gender."
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The group Man Friday welcomed the commitment to defend single-sex spaces, but said it would be unworkable if people were allowed to change their gender without a formal diagnosis.
Amy Desir said: "Handing out gender recognition certificates on demand removes safeguarding checks. You can't tell the difference between someone with a need to live in their preferred gender and someone who's there to prey on women."
Stonewall, which campaigns for gay and trans rights, said: "Trans people are subject to appalling levels of abuse in daily life and dehumanised by the way the current debate questions their very right to exist. This is unacceptable in Britain in 2018 and it demonstrates just why the Gender Recognition Act needs urgent reform."
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