Biology unit set up to scrutinise gender policies
Politicians fear ideology that has gripped public services may harm rights of women and children
POLITICIANS are launching a biology policy unit to stop gender identity ideology “compromising” women’s and children’s rights.
Rosie Duffield, the Labour MP, Joanna Cherry, an SNP MP, and Baroness Jenkin, a Conservative peer, have joined forces to help ensure policies across the public sector that are based on gender identity theory are documented and scrutinised.
Their shared belief that “scientific fact and reality have become the victim of an ideological revolution” will be addressed by a dedicated “biology matters” unit at Policy Exchange, an influential think tank.
The politicians, who have all spoken out about the dangers of gender self-identification, are championing the unit, which will document the widespread adoption of policies based on gender identity theory across health, education, the criminal justice system, sport and the workplace.
Gender identity ideology refers to the belief that individuals’ self-identified gender should take precedence over biological sex.
Two years ago, the Government rejected a proposed law that would allow people to officially change gender without a medical diagnosis. However, many organisations have developed policies enabling self-identification.
Examples include an NHS hospital using the terms such “birthing people” instead of “mothers” in an effort to be more “inclusive” of pregnant patients who identify as transgender.
Elsewhere, prosecutors have been told that defendants who identify as transgender should be referred to in court using their preferred pronouns.
Some schools have introduced unisex lavatories acting on advice from some groups that say it is “best practice” under the Equality Act.
However, in August, Suella Braverman, the former Attorney General, said schools that only offer gender-neutral lavatories are acting unlawfully.
Ms Cherry has criticised planned legislation in Scotland that will make it easier to obtain a gender recognition certificate by allowing a process of self-declaration and scrapping the need for a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria.
Ms Duffield has been outspoken on her view that there should be protected spaces that are not open to those born male. Baroness Jenkin, a supporter of gay rights and equality, has warned that the cancellation of the terms “woman” and “girl” in public policy will have disastrous consequences.
Policies that “lean towards accommodating the concerns of a small but vocal minority risk compromising the rights and safety of women and children, and same-sex attracted people,” the three politicians said in a joint statement.
They added: “Politicians across the spectrum are struggling to answer one of the easiest biology questions there is: ‘what is a woman?’
“The impact of gender identity ideology on children’s rights, women’s rights and the rights of LGB people, however, is a matter of importance for everyone who cares about truth and fairness.”
They are launching a public call for evidence of the development and impact of policies based on gender ID.
“Perhaps most worryingly, this is taking place without public scrutiny, and in the absence of democratic consensus,” the politicians warn. “In some cases, organisations have even adopted policies that are in direct opposition to the law of the land, including the Equality Act and the Human Rights Act.”