Westminster announces enactment of section 35, blocking Scotland's Gender Recognition Bill from Royal Assent.

Westminster will use section 35 of the Scotland Act 1998 to overturn the Gender Recognition Reform Bill.

Scottish Secretary Alister Jack will publish the section 35 order on the 17th of January, setting out the legal basis under which the order is being used.

This comes a month after the bill was passed with over two-thirds of MSPs voting in favour of the reforms proposed.

Despite its overwhelming support in Scottish parliament, including from Scottish Labour, both the UK’s Conservative and Labour parties appear to oppose the bill.

Keir Starmer spoke to the BBC on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, he said: “I do have concerns about the age of transition now reduced to 16 and the importance of the equality act.

“For 99.9% of women, it is biological, and their rights must be preserved.”

Kier Starmer giving his New Year speech. Source: Getty

The Gender Recognition Reform Bill seeks to: remove the need for a medical diagnosis; reduce the minimum length of time an applicant must live ‘in line’ with their gender before seeking government recognition to three months from two years; and reduce the minimum age of application down to 16.

The Tory Scottish Secretary Alister Jack seemed to echo Starmer’s concerns in his statement, he said: “My decision today is about the legislation’s consequences for the operation of GW-wide equalities protections and other reserved matter.

“If the Scottish Government chooses to bring an amended bill back for reconsideration in the Scottish Parliament, I hope we can work together to find a constructive way forward that both respects devolution and the operation of UK Parliament legislation.”

Alister Jack with British PM Rishi Sunak. Source: Getty

This is the first time that section 35 will be enacted, in a move which many feel will further weaken the union as the SNP seek to hold a second referendum.

The order can be used if a bill is passed that the Secretary of State has reasonable grounds to believe would be incompatible with any international obligations. It can also be used in the interests of defence or national security, or which makes modifications of the law as it applies to reserved matters and which the Secretary of State has reasonable grounds to believe would harm the operation of the law as it applies to reserved matters.

It will be understood which of these aspects Jack feels is relevant to warrant using the order when its published, but from the rhetoric in his statement, it appears to be on the grounds that he feels the bill may not conform to the Equality Act 2010. This act is supposed to protect trans people from discrimination, but many hate groups like the LGB Alliance argue it should be used to exclude trans women from women’s spaces.

Colin Macfarlane, director of Stonewall Scotland said: “I’m ashamed the UK Government has taken this unprecedented move to tell the Scottish Parliament that it can’t treat its trans citizens with dignity.”

While many in Scotland felt the bill was still lacking in scope, it was largely welcomed in, as a means of moving transgender rights away from a bureaucratic medical diagnosis that many felt was gatekeeping human rights.