In a move that opponents claim will only increase the “toxicity” around the gender debate, Humza Yousaf has confirmed that trans women will be protected by new misogyny laws.
The First Minister emphasized that transgender people frequently faced “threats of murder and risks of disfigurement” regardless of whether they were directing cruel abuse.
But Mr. Yousaf has been criticized by campaigners, including writer JK Rowling and the Scottish Conservatives, who do not feel trans women are women, over his evaluation of who the hatred legislation will secure.
After a review by human rights attorney Baroness Helena Kennedy determined that particular hatred crimes needed their own rules, the British government was recently criticized for omitting the sexual characteristic from its contentious hate crime legislation.
In the upcoming policy, Mr. Yousaf has already reaffirmed that transgender girls will be protected.
He stated that transgender women and girls will both be protected and protected. “Often they are the people suffering threats of assault and dangers of deformity,” he said.
It might be that a trans woman walks down the street and is threatened with murder, but the perpetrator is unsure whether they are trans or intersex women. They may base their premise on how well perceived they are as women.
In her evaluation, the First Minister remarked that “Baroness Kennedy does a good job of working on this,” stating that anyone who has been a victim of one of these crimes should be covered.
Humza Yousaf doesn’t rule out puberty blocker restrictions as Sandyford pressure…
Because there are so many women who have “raised issues” over sex that the hate crime policy does not cover, according to Mr. Yousaf, the Bill would be pushed ahead with “urgency and rate”.
But Ms. Rowling, who opposes trans rights, was quick to criticize the First Minister’s notes.
The Harry Potter writer once more made his utter disregard for women and their rights distinct while writing on X. His absurd hate crime law was forbidding people, and now he has a “misogyny rules” that aims to protect people as well.”
Meghan Gallacher, the deputy chief of the Scottish Conservatives, continued: “This is yet another attempt by the SNP to create a pyramid of guarded features. It runs the risk of increasing the poisoning of the discussion by pitting various activist groups against one another.”
The Scottish Government has rejected requests from the Republicans to make a speech to Holyrood regarding its reaction to the location Cass review into transgender service for young people in England.
After NHS England confirmed a comparable move next month, Mr. Yousaf’s state and NHS Scotland have been met with criticism from competitors for failing to immediately block the use of hormone therapy for people under the age of 18.
Dr. Hilary Cass published her review into gender service for young people in England and Wales, which warned using puberty blockers starting at the age of 16 with “extreme caution,” adding that “we have no good information on the long-term outcomes of interventions to control gender-related grief.”
Ms. Gallacher claimed to have repeatedly requested a review of the gender-related services provided by children and young people in the north of the border, similar to the Cass review.
She claimed she was “warned about the lack of evidence in relation to puberty blockers” and that she had asked SNP ministers to “pause puberty blockers until we have more evidence that they are safe to use.”
In response, SNP parliamentary business minister, George Adam reiterated the Cass findings would be “closely considered”.
He said: “The Cass Review was into services in NHS England, not Scotland. Therefore, it is obvious that the Scottish Government is not in charge of doing that, but rather that the UK government should do the same with its suggestions for their healthcare.”
Prior to this, Mr. Yousaf did not rule out the use of puberty blockers in Scotland for young transgender people. The First Minister suggested that his government was considering expanding regional health facilities to counteract Scotland’s only dedicated facility for teenagers.
There are fewer than 20 young people in Scotland receiving puberty blockers from NHS Scotland for gender dysphoria, according to reports. As of the end of last year, Scotland’s only specialist gender clinic for under-18s, the Sandyford in Glasgow, had more than 1,100 patients on its waiting list.
Mr. Yousaf has rejected calls from opponents to close the Sandyford, but he has not opposed the introduction of stricter restrictions on puberty blockers.
The Scottish Government and the health boards will be taking the time to review the report and go over it in detail, according to the First Minister.
“I am not going to be making decisions on what clinicians should or shouldn’t prescribe, but this is a very lengthy report and something that is getting the utmost consideration,” he told the BBC.
“It is a 400-page report, but I promise it won’t take an excessive amount of time to consider when it comes to choosing the best course of action for some of our most underprivileged kids.”
Mr. Yousaf added: “In terms of Sandyford, I don’t believe there is a case to close Sandyford. It offers sexual healthcare to the broadest and most underrepresented groups. More regional health centers are one of the main recommendations that is worth taking into account and exploring.
“I would simply point out that it’s better for clinicians with expertise to make decisions on puberty blockers, not politicians. Every suggestion made by Dr. Cass will be taken into account as part of the overall report’s considerations, including those regarding puberty blockers.”
In response, Ms Gallacher said: “This interview again exposed Humza Yousaf’s painfully weak leadership. He stalled for time and handed the blame to doctors on the Cass Review, failing to do so young, vulnerable children and their parents.
In the interim, the prescribing of puberty blockers is considered an abdication of leadership. The First Minister claims that there are still many options being explored, but it doesn’t seem like giving Scottish children evidence-based treatment or closing the Sandyford is one of them.”
