Confrontation between London and Edinburgh over gender escalates This Russian has a crazy theory about what will happen in his country in 2023

On December 22, Scotland passed legislation to make it easier for transgender people to change their gender. And clearly: 86 MPs voted in favour, 39 against.

Everything else the British government was enthusiastic about. She quickly made it clear that she was on the side of those criticizing the law – and threatened to take countermeasures. She is entitled to do so.

Which law is it?

The controversial law is a new regulation of the so-called gender law. The new regulation stipulates that the requirement of a medical report as a condition for changing the gender entry no longer applies.

This means that a diagnosis of so-called gender incongruity (gender dysphoria) does not have to be made in advance by a specialist. Gender incongruity describes the condition in which individuals do not identify with the sex assigned to them at birth. Sex self-identification would suffice with the elimination of expert judgment.

People who feel such a gender incongruity can change their gender input not only more quickly, but also more easily. In addition, the minimum age for such an application would be lowered from 18 to 16 years. And trans people no longer need to have lived in the new gender role for two years as before. With the new law, three months would be enough.

Why did Scotland want to change the law?

The amendment was proposed six years ago by Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon. The process of changing the gender entry is too bureaucratic and intrusive, the proponents of the law complained. To address this issue, the Scottish Government has launched two major public consultations on the issue. She then proposed the simpler, new regulations. To this they argued:

The vote on the bill led to an unprecedented two-day night session in the Scottish Parliament in December. In the end, the law was clearly passed by a vote of 86 to 39.

Why is the British government getting involved?

Scots can make their own laws on issues such as health, education and the environment. However, the UK Parliament is responsible for matters such as defence, national security, migration and foreign policy.

The “Scotland Act” also allows the British government to block Scottish laws in very few, specific cases. For example, if it believes that a Scottish law would be incompatible with international agreements or national security. Or where Scottish law conflicts with UK law on a matter which is not within the jurisdiction of Scotland.

Under the “Scotland Act”, the British government has four weeks to block a devolved law. And that is exactly what she plans to do now.

How does the British government argue?

The British government announced on Monday evening that it wanted to block the planned gender law due to concerns that British equality rules would be violated. Equal treatment legislation is also centrally regulated and the responsibility of Westminster.

Conservative Scottish minister Alister Jack, who represents Scotland in UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s cabinet, announced that he would apply Section 35 of the Scotland Act for the first time:

He adds that transgender people who have gone through the process of gender reassignment deserve his respect, support and understanding. However, his decision concerns the impact the legislation would have on the application of equality protection across Britain.

Jack further emphasized that he did not take the decision lightly:

How is Scotland reacting?

Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon described the London blockade on Twitter as a “frontal assault on our democratically elected Scottish Parliament” and its powers.

Sturgeon announced that he would continue to fight and stand for the Scottish Parliament. Because she fears, “If Westminster gets away with it, it will be the first of many times.” Scotland cannot reverse the British government’s decision. The country has only two options: change the law and return it to the Scottish Parliament, or take the UK government to court.

According to the BBC, the case is expected to end up in court. Moreover, like the independence issue, it is likely to develop into a dispute between the two governments in court and further strain the relationship.

(saw, with material from the sda ​​and dpa news agencies.)