Gender recognition reform unlikely to have major impact on prison operations, says Scottish Prison Service deputy chief executive

Reform to Scotland’s Gender Recognition Act is not likely to cause a major impact on prison operations if passed, according to a Scottish Prison Service official.

James Kerr, deputy chief executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), told a Scottish Parliament committee the service was “ready” and “confident” of responding to potential increases in gender recognition certificates (GRCs) – a document that changes the holder’s legal sex – amongst inmates.

His comments come as the Scottish Government is considering the Gender Recognition Reform Bill, which seeks to ‘streamline’ and ‘make it easier’ for a trans person to obtain a GRC.

Part of the reform includes removing the need for a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria and cutting the time needed for applicants to live in their acquired gender from two years to three months, with a further three-month reflection period. It also includes cutting the minimum age for an application from 18 to 16.

James Kerr, Deputy Chief Executive, Scottish Prison Service speaking at the Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee at the Scottish Parliament.

There are 16 trans people in custody in Scotland, according to an update given by SPS representatives at the committee.

Out of those people, 75 per cent of trans men are held in female estates, while there is a 50 per cent split in trans women held in male and female estates.

Mr Kerr said: "We currently don’t see it [the reform] being a major impact for us. Sixteen people … and I would anticipate this year that we would see in the region and possibly in excess of 15,000 people travel through our prisons on a daily basis.

"Even if there were an increase of people that asked for support relative to transgender issues, we don’t see it as having a large operational impact for us.”

A concern amongst certain gender critical groups and individuals is the reform to gender recognition legislation in Scotland could lead to an increase in "bad faith actors” abusing the GRC to attack and harass cis-women in single-sex spaces.

However, Mr Kerr told the committee there were measures in place to ensure a “case-by-case”, “individualised” approach encapsulates the well-being of all inmates in Scottish prisons.

Mr Kerr said: "A person divulging whether or not they have a GRC is completely voluntary. So whilst we would ask them, they are under no obligation to share that information with us.

"People are placed where they are placed based on a range of issues, one of which is the GRC if it’s declared and other issues would include the wishes and welfare of the person concerned, a consideration of those that may live around that person and the placing of that person within the prison estate and whether or not self sharing is appropriate for that person.

"Harm is a specific issue for us, so one of the specific considerations we would undertake to assess when placing anyone in a prison would be that harm-related issue relative to sexual offending or sexual assault.”

However, Mr Kerr also noted people could still use the GRC for “nefarious purposes”. He said: “Might people use a GRC for nefarious purposes? Yes, that is one possibility, but the GRC is only one aspect of the consideration we would give.”

Also speaking to the committee, Dr Kevin Guyan, a researcher of gender, sex and sexuality data, said “we are drowning in data that demonstrates the need for reform”.

Dr Guyan said: “As data collection activities in Scotland do not currently ask individuals to share information about the sex recorded on their birth certificate or GRC, the Bill will not impact the collection, analysis and presentation of data.”