The legal definition of a woman is based on biological sex, the U.K.’s Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday. The unanimous ruling, which is victory for those who want gender to be based on biological sex and a blow for transgender rights, should not be seen as a victory of one group over another, the court said.
The ruling is the outcome of a protracted six-year legal battle between the Scottish government and women’s rights group For Women Scotland (FWS) over the U.K.’s Equality Act, 2010.
“….the terms ‘woman’ and ‘sex’ in the Equality Act (2010) refer to a biological woman and biological sex,” U.K. Supreme Court Justice Patrick Hodge said on Wednesday, as he summarised the judgment.
“But we counsel against reading this judgment as the triumph of one or more groups in our society at the expense of another. It is not,” he added, explaining that transgender people are protected by the same Act against discrimination through the protected category of ‘gender reassignment’ but also against discrimination and harassment, in substance, in their acquired gender.
FWS had taken the Scottish government to court in 2018 over the inclusion of trans women in the definition of “woman” with regard to a law mandating representation for women on public boards (of directors). A Scottish court had said the matter was beyond its jurisdiction. The Scottish government had responded by issuing guidance that said an individual with a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC) in the female gender could be used to define the term ‘woman’. On Wednesday, the court ruled that the Scottish government’s guidance was incorrect.
“This is a deeply concerning ruling for human rights and a huge blow to some of the most marginalised people in our society,” trans rights campaigner and Scottish Greens lawmaker, Maggie Chapman said in a statement.
“Whatever happens next, we will continue to stand with trans people and resist the nasty and aggressive culture war that is being waged against them,” she added.
Trans rights group Scottish Trans urged people not to panic, adding that there would be commentary to “deliberately overstate the impact” of the decision.
“Women are women and men are men: you cannot change your biological sex,” Leader of the Opposition and Conservative Party chief Kemi Badenoch said.
The ruling is likely to have broad consequences for all of the U.K., with the government saying it brought “clarity and confidence” for women and service providers such as hospitals, sports clubs and shelters.
FWS co-founder Susan Smith welcomed the ruling outside the court , saying, “[Biological] sex is real and women can now feel safe that services and spaces designated for women are for women.”
Author of the Harry Potter series, J.K. Rowling, who donated to FWS and is a vocal campaigner for basing the definition of gender on biological sex, appeared to support the ruling, posting news of the decision and positive reactions to it on social media.
The U.K. judgment comes as an inflection point in long drawn-out culture wars that are being fought over gender on both sides of the Atlantic. The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump had declared in January this year that the U.S. government would recognise only two genders and these would be based on biological sex.
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