The number of people applying to legally change their gender has almost doubled, new figures show.
Of those 398, over 260 were granted full certificates and just 14 applications were refused.
More men attempted to change their gender than women, and those recorded as “single” made more applications than those recorded as married, with 226 and 31 respectively.
The numbers have contributed to a decade high in application numbers with those aged in their 20s and 30s most likely to legally request a gender change.
Those born from 2000 onwards—including teenagers—were recorded as the second highest age group involved in the GRC process.
Gender Dysphoria
Since the passing of the Gender Recognition Act in 2004, GRCs have allowed people to be legally recognised by the gender they identify with, if different from birth.However, this can only be either male or female, as “non-binary” genders aren’t legally recognised in the UK.
Applications are put before a panel made up of both legal and medical experts.
Only those aged over 18 can apply and proof must be provided that the applicant has lived as their “affirmed gender” for at least two years, according to the government.
They must also provide evidence of this, including a change in name or identity on official documents.
Applicants also require a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria and a number of other medical reports including one medical by a UK-registered doctor and the other by a UK-registered clinical psychologist.
Those married or in a civil partnership are required to have their partner sign a document agreeing to the GRC.
If they don’t, applicants can only get an interim certificate that is valid for six months.
They can only receive a full GRC once they are longer married or in a civil relationship.
Since the act fully came into effect, 68 percent of interim certificates issued have been converted to a full GRC, with over half converted within 30 weeks.
However, no interim certificates were recorded as being converted to a full GRC in the most recent figures released by the government.
Toxic
In July 2018 the Government Equalities Office (GEO) launched a consultation into the reform of the act, and in September 2020 set out what steps it would take.These included making the process available online, reducing the certificate fee from £140 to £5, and opening three new gender clinics that year to cut waiting lists.
The following month, the Women and Equalities Committee launched its inquiry into whether the government’s proposals were enough, receiving more than 800 pieces of written evidence as well as oral witness evidence.
Its report, “Reform of the Gender Recognition Act,” notes that debate in this area has “become extremely toxic at times,” with many stakeholders disagreeing.
But it says there are areas of agreement among some, such as removing the requirement to live in the acquired gender for two years, which the government should enact “immediately.”
The committee’s chairwoman, Conservative MP Caroline Nokes, said the government’s response to the 2018 consultation “amounted to little more than administrative changes.”
In December, the Scottish Parliament passed the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill, which would enable anyone over the age of 16 to self-identify their gender.
After taking up his Scottish first minister post in April, Humza Yousaf said his government would go to court to challenge the UK government’s decision.
The predator—who changed his name to Isla Bryson—was sent to Cornton Vale women’s prison near Stirling to await sentencing after being convicted in February.
He was later moved to the male estate following a public and political storm over the plans to house him alongside female prisoners.
It emerged that the 31-year-old only began transitioning from male to female in 2020 after being charged with raping two women.
An urgent review on the movement of the male rapist to the female prison was also ordered by Justice Secretary Keith Brown.
That revealed that Mr. Bryson had spent a day-and-a-half in the female prison where he was housed in a segregation unit away from other inmates.
The issue piled pressure on Scotland’s then First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who faced street protests over the handling of the row.
Within weeks, Ms. Sturgeon announced she was resigning as Scotland’s leader.
Hospital Ban
While the Labour Party has vowed to make it easier for people to change their gender, the Tory party has taken a more hardline stance towards the issue.As well as working on guidelines for schools surrounding pupils and gender ID, the health secretary says he is looking at plans to prevent men who identify as women from using female-only hospital wards.
Steve Barclay told the Conservative Party Conference he would look into changing the NHS constitution to address concerns about biological men using wards intended for biologically female patients.
The move would offer the same for male-only wards and women who identify as men.
He also confirmed that “sex-specific language” had now been fully restored to NHS online health advice pages on conditions such as cervical cancer and the menopause.
His intervention followed what he called “unacceptable changes to the NHS website that erased women from conditions such as cervical cancer,” and stopping the NHS from making staff declare their pronouns.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman gave her backing to the plans, telling broadcasters on a visit to Bolton: “Trans women have no place in women’s wards or indeed any safe space relating to biological women.
“And the health secretary is absolutely right to clarify and make it clear that biological men should not have treatments in the same wards and in the same safe spaces as biological women.”
In his speech at the annual conference, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said it “common sense” that “a man is a man and a woman is a woman,” a remark that sparked criticism from transgender rights activists.
