Schedule 6 - Sex Discrimination
Gender Recognition Bill [Lords]
2:30 pm
Mr David Lammy (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs; Tottenham, Labour)
Once a person has recognition of their acquired gender, he or she will be protected against discrimination on the basis of that acquired gender, in the same way as any other person of that gender is protected. The entirety of the Sex Discrimination Act 1975, as it applies to men and women, will apply. That protection on the basis of gender or sex extends to the provision of goods, facilities and services as well as employment. There is the separate issue of protection from discrimination on the basis of gender reassignment. Discrimination against a male-to-female transsexual person may occur either on the basis of being a woman, or on the basis of being a transsexual person.
Protection from the second variety of discrimination already exists in the realm of employment and vocational training. It flows from the equal treatment directive and the decision of the European Court of Justice in P v. S and Cornwall county council, to which the hon. Member for Oxford, West and Abingdon (Dr. Harris) referred. In that case, it was decided that, in European Union law, sex discrimination included discrimination on the basis of gender reassignment. Certain exceptions apply to the
existing protection, but schedule 6 removes most of them for individuals who have recognition in the acquired gender.
It is true that the Bill does not extend the existing anti-discrimination protection for transsexual people to goods, facilities and services. The Government were pressed on that point by the Joint Committee on Human Rights. We made it clear that we will continue the UK's approach to dealing with discrimination issues in conjunction with our EU partners. A new sex discrimination directive that extends to goods and services was published in November last year and negotiations on it are now under way. As a result of the European Court of Justice decision, the negotiations will consider effects on transsexual people. We want to ensure that the issues raised by the Joint Committee and others are properly considered and that there is consultation not only with the transsexual community but with businesses and other parts of the community, such as religious groups and the voluntary sector.