The United Kingdom’s
supreme court has ruled that the legal definition of a woman is based on
biological sex.
In the 88-page judgment delivered on Wednesday, the court
said the definition was meant to clarify any grey areas in the Equality Act,
ruling in favour of For Women Scotland (FWS), a gender campaign group which was
also the appellant.
FWS had challenged the Scottish government’s legislation
that included transgender women with gender recognition certificates (GRCs)
within the legal definition of ‘woman’ — under equality laws.
Specifically, FWS argued that the legal definition of
‘woman’ should be based solely on biological sex, not gender identity or
possession of a GRC.
They contended that including trans women in the definition
of woman under the Equality Act 2010 and related Scottish laws could undermine
sex-based rights and affect single-sex spaces and services such as shelters,
hospital wards, and sports.
In a unanimous verdict, the court ruled that “the concept of
sex is binary, a person is either a woman or a man” but cautioned that the
decision was not “a triumph of one or more groups in our society at the expense
of another”.
Susan Smith, the co-founder of FWS, hailed the judges’
ruling.
“Sex is real and
women can now feel safe that services and spaces designated for women are for
women,” Smith said while thanking the court.
Kemi Badenoch, UK Conservative Party leader, congratulated
FWS and said the ruling is a “victory”.
“Saying ‘trans women are women’ was never true in fact, and
now isn’t true in law either,” Badenoch said.
“This is a victory for all of the women who faced personal
abuse or lost their jobs for stating the obvious.
“Women are women and
men are men: you cannot change your biological sex.”
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) said it is
happy with the court’s decision, but needs more time to consider the full
implications.
The ruling reflects how developments in the US could have
far reaching effects in the developed world.
Hours into his second term in office, President Donald Trump
signed an executive order mandating the recognition of two sexes — male and
female — in the US.
He ordered that government initiatives around diversity,
equity, and inclusion be scrapped.
Trump also slashed foreign aid budgets in furtherance of his
‘America first’ agenda.
Weeks later, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced that
portions of foreign aid would be cut to supplement his country’s defence
budget.
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