Somerville cannot say when new guidance on single-sex spaces will be issued

Scotland’s Social Justice Secretary has said she is not able to say when fresh guidance on single-sex spaces will be issued following last week’s Supreme Court ruling.

Shirley-Anne Somerville did vow to amend the guidance that will be issued to the country’s public bodies, including the NHS, but said she would wait to meet with the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) first.

It comes after the Scottish Government lost a high-profile court case against the campaign group For Women Scotland.

Britain’s top judges ruled on Wednesday the terms “woman” and “sex” in the Equality Act 2010 “refer to a biological woman and biological sex”.

In a statement to the Scottish Parliament on Tuesday, the Social Justice Secretary reassured MSPs that new guidance will be issued to public bodies in line with the verdict.

She said the Scottish Government fully accepts the unanimous judgment of the court.

She also told MSPs that the Government had “no plans” to bring back the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill, which aimed to make it easier for trans people to change their legally recognised gender.

And she reiterated comments from the UK Supreme Court judges, which warned against interpreting its ruling as a win for any one group over another.

“The Scottish Government does, of course, accept the judgment of the Supreme Court,” she said.

“It is a significant legal ruling and it is right that we take time to consider it.”

Ms Somerville added that it was “important to recognise the tone and the temperature of the surrounding debate”.

“It should be clear to all of us in this chamber, regardless of our view on any of those matters, including the judgment last Wednesday, that it has had a very significant impact on people,” she added.

The minister said she would meet with the EHRC alongside the Health Secretary, as it aims to give out fresh guidance on the issue in the summer.

But she added: “Because I am still waiting for that meeting with the EHRC on the timetable, I am not in a position to be able to see when guidance will be updated across government, because I think it is very important I hear from the EHRC directly first, rather than just listening to what I have read in the press.”

Ms Somerville said transgender people have experienced “real anxiety” since the Supreme Court ruling.

She told Holyrood that she spoke to those affected in the wake of the ruling, saying: “Stakeholders that represent trans and non-binary people are reporting real anxiety from their networks and service users and concerns about their daily lives.

“It is significant that the Supreme Court stated that their judgment that the rights of the trans community are enshrined in law, and I want to reassure our trans community that you are valued and the Scottish Government is fully committed to protecting everyone’s rights and that includes your community.”

Ms Somerville said she attempted to meet with For Women Scotland but they refused, although campaigners say the group were only invited at 6pm on the day of the judgment for a meeting the following morning.

Speaking after her statement, the Scottish Conservatives urged the Scottish Government to permanently abandon any plans for gender reforms, which they described as “harmful”.

Russell Findlay, the party’s leader, said First Minister John Swinney was “right behind” his party’s gender reforms.

He called on the SNP leader to apologise to women.

He said: “John Swinney wants to distance himself from it all but as Nicola Sturgeon’s deputy and her strongest ally, he was right behind it.

“He was willing to sacrifice women’s rights, including the rights to single-sex spaces and services.”

He added: “So, in light of the momentous Supreme Court judgment, John Swinney owes an apology to the people of Scotland, but especially to women.

“This harmful ideology must now be rooted out of our entire public sector, schools, prisons, hospitals and policing.

“Far too much time in taxpayers’ money has been wasted in this already. The country needs to move on”.

Dame Jackie Baillie, the deputy Scottish Labour leader, said the Government had got “ahead of the law” by issuing guidance on single-sex spaces that was not in line with legislation.

She said: “The Scottish Government, though, has got itself into a position where it has encouraged practice to get ahead of the law. Guidance has been issued by the Government to a range of public bodies, including the NHS, which now needs to be revised, and this will be at considerable cost to those organisations in both time and money.”

Scottish Green MSP Maggie Chapman warned of the impact the judgment may have on trans people in the UK.

“Trans people want to be able to live their lives like any of us, without fear of prejudice or violence,” she said, “but they are concerned about how their lives will be affected, including access to healthcare and other essential services.”