Select committee: Women and Equalities Committee
Recommendation 2
Third report- Reform of the Gender Recognition Act
Published 21 Dec 2021
Paragraph 39
Addressed to Government Equalities Office
Women and Equalities Committee Reform of the Gender Recognition Act All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
We welcome the move to offer applicants a digital route. This will bring the process up to date with other Government services, which can be accessed online. The Government must ensure it is a system that can be accessed via smartphones as well as other devices. It will also need to offer a non-digitised route for those people who do not have access to the right technology and who feel more able to submit documents in hard copy. In response to this report the Government must set out and commit to placing the process online in the next six months. It should provide regular updates to stakeholders, including this Committee, on what stage the process is at and immediately clarify whether a non-digitalised system will continue to exist.
From: Women and Equalities Committee, Third report- Reform of the Gender Recognition Act (HC 977), paragraph 39, 21 December 2021
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 24 March 2022 (deadline 21 February 2022).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government states that its September 2020 position on the Gender Recognition Act "is right and appropriate" and that it will not change the legislation, while pointing to administrative improvements such as the fee cut and digitisation.
- On the diagnosis of gender dysphoria, the government declines to remove it, saying the requirements ensure the process is "rigorous", but says it will amend the reference to a "disorder" via a remedial order "in due course".
- It does not consider it necessary to change the statutory declaration, and considers it "equitable" for spousal consent to remain, as it is a safeguard for the non-transitioning spouse.
- It says the digital application process is in testing and "will be operational by summer 2022", and that applicants can still use the paper process if they prefer.
- It does not consider a formal healthcare strategy for transgender and non-binary people necessary, while DHSC says it is "happy to provide the Committee with annual updates" on the pilot clinics' progress and waiting times.