Boris Johnson has binned a previously proposed plan that would have let people change their legal gender simply by “self-identifying” with a different sex, according to The Sunday Times.
The measures were originally mapped out under former Prime Minister Theresa May’s tenure and were aimed at allowing transgender people to change their birth certificates without a medical diagnosis and recommendation.
According to The Times, Boris Johnson’s government has now abandoned those plans and has replaced them with a total outlawing of “gay cure” therapies that is due to be announced soon. The newspaper describes that move as “an attempt to placate LGBT people.” Moreover, the government will implement new measures to protect “female-only spaces” such as public toilets to stop them being used by those with “male anatomy.”
The Times says that the new measures are part of a leaked paper that sets out the government’s delayed response to a public consultation on the Gender Recognition Act. Reportedly, the paper is “basically ready” for public release by the Equalities Minister Liz Truss before the end of July 2020.
Around 100,000 people took part in the consultation in which around 70 percent reportedly expressed a favourable opinion of people being allowed to self-identify as a man or woman.
Yet, government officials were reportedly skeptical of the results, believing they had been “skewed” by an “avalanche” of responses encouraged by so-called trans-rights groups.
The report quotes an unnamed source as saying that, “in terms of changing what is on your birth certificate, you will still need to have a proper medical approval. And you’re not going to be able to march in and find a hippie quack doctor who is willing to say you’re a woman. That’s not going to happen.”
“There will be big moves on safe spaces and woman-only toilets and a total ban on ‘gay cure’ therapies,” the source added.
A government spokesperson told the newspaper that, “we will publish our response to our consultation on the Gender Recognition Act this summer. The Minister for Woman and Equalities has also made clear that she will be brining forward plans to end conversion therapy shortly.”
Netizens weighed in with their own thoughts, some supportive of the government's move while others opposed.
Being trans I'm quite glad this has been scrapped. It reduces the risk of self identifications n being abused by unscrupulous people to gain access into areas assigned to particular sex's
— Anonytrace (@anonytrace) June 14, 2020
Praise be!
— Mica (@disintergration) June 14, 2020
Rolling back trans rights is despicable. Using a pandemic as cover, during Pride month, even moreso.
— Andy Waterfield (@andywritesstuff) June 14, 2020
Evil and callous. A bad decision.
— Benjamin Smith 📈 (@IWTheDarkPrince) June 14, 2020
