HUMZA Yousaf is expected to announce legal action against the UK Government this week after it blocked legislation which would have made it easier for people to change their legal gender.
During his leadership campaign, Yousaf said he would challenge Scottish Secretary Alister Jack’s unprecedented use of a legal order which prevented the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill from becoming law.
The First Minister was the sole candidate in the race who backed legal action, with Kate Forbes supporting a compromise while Ash Regan wanted court action ruled out.
READ MORE: John Curtice: Yes support steady but SNP must hope voters remain loyal
The Scottish Government has until mid-April to lodge a judicial review with Yousaf telling journalists outside Bute House that there would be an announcement on the challenge “imminently”.
“I made it abundantly clear in the course of the leadership contest that my starting principle is to challenge the Westminster veto over the GRR Bill.
“As you can imagine I have been having intense conversations in that regard”, he told reporters at a press briefing on Thursday.
“And I will be making an announcement on the particular challenge of the Section 35 order imminently given that deadline.
Yousaf also stressed his continued commitment to the Bute House Agreement for the remainder of the current parliament, which will sit until 2026.
He said: “Yes, we are committed to it. There is a review mechanism in it and we will keep the Bute House Agreement under regular review.
“We are committed to it, and not just committed to it, our party membership, when it was put to a vote, those of whom voted, 95% of them endorsed the Bute House Agreement.”
The legislation on gender reform was backed by an overwhelming majority of MSPs from across the political spectrum.
It was then blocked by Westminster over concerns that the legislation would undermine the Equality Act.
The deadline for launching a judicial review into the veto is April 17, shortly after the Scottish Parliament returns from its Easter recess which runs until April 16.
A UK Government spokesperson said: “The Secretary of State for Scotland made an order under Section 35 of the Scotland Act 1998, preventing the Scottish Parliament’s Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill from proceeding to Royal Assent.
“This was done after thorough and careful consideration of all the relevant advice and the policy implications.
“This legislation would have an adverse effect on the operation of Great Britain-wide equalities protections and other reserved matters.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel