As if the demand for another independence referendum were not enough, Scotland and England have entered another possible collision course with constitutional repercussions due to the trans law that has just been approved by Parliament in Edinburgh, authorizing the official change of sex from the 16 years without the need –as up to now– for a medical report certifying that the person requesting it suffers from dysphoria.
The so-called "sexual recognition law" sponsored by the SNP (Scottish National Party) and the Greens has gone ahead, after a bitter debate, with the support of Labor and the Liberal Democrats, and the opposition of the Conservatives. But London has threatened to veto it, alleging that "it could have an adverse effect on issues where, even if they are regional transfers, Westminster enjoys final jurisdiction."
As in Spain and other countries, sex change legislation is deeply divisive. Although Holyrood Parliament approved it by a clear majority of 86 to 39, there have been dissensions across all parties. Three of 28 Conservative MPs voted in favor and nine SNP members voted against, the biggest rebellion to date against the leadership and authority of Nicola Sturgeon.
London's argument for denying royal assent to Scottish trans law is that it would create a dysfunction with England, where the age to officially request a sex change is 18, you must have lived a minimum of 24 months with the new identity sexual intercourse, present a medical report certifying that the person in question suffers from dysphoria, and have a panel authorize the “transition”. The Minister for Scottish Affairs, Ian Jack, has warned of the danger of "sex tourism" within the UK given the diversity of regulations.
In Scotland, and within both the SNP and Labour, the relaxation of the requirements to change sexual identity has particularly irritated women who consider that it is intended from the point of view of men and "invades their space" and their spheres of security and privacy, allowing, for example, a sexual predator to declare himself to be a female and demand to be committed to serve his sentence in a women's prison. "It's like a fox saying that he is a chicken and putting him in the chicken coop simply by taking his word for it," said an SNP deputy who has been accused of transphobic.
The trans issue poses a serious problem not only for the SNP (Scottish National Party, supporter of independence) but also for Labour, on both sides of the border. Its leader at the national level, Keir Starmer, remains silent on this, as on almost all contentious issues, including Brexit. His inability to define what a woman is so as not to offend anyone has long been the subject of all kinds of jokes.
Feminist groups have organized various demonstrations in front of the Holyrood Parliament, in Edinburgh, to protest against the ease with which it will be possible to change sexual identity in Scotland. But Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon has ignored all the protests. "I've thought about it a lot," she says, "and it's what's right, we can't discriminate against minorities."
