The Scottish government has announced that it will launch a legal challenge against the UK government after it triggered Section 35 of the Scotland Act to block a gender reform bill voted for by MSPs last December.
Newly-elected SNP leader and Scotland’s first minister, Humza Yousaf, confirmed that his government will push ahead with legal action and lodge a petition for a judicial review of the UK government’s use of Section 35.
MSPs voted by 86 votes to 39 in favour of allowing transgender people to self-identify, meaning trans people would no longer need to be medically diagnosed with gender dysphoria before obtaining a gender recognition certificate (GRC).
In addition, trans people would no longer need to prove that they’ve lived in their gender identity for two years before gaining recognition, while also dropping the minimum age of applying for the certificate from 18 to 16.