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Seòmar agus comataidhean

Official Report: search what was said in Parliament

The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.  

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Dates of parliamentary sessions
  1. Session 1: 12 May 1999 to 31 March 2003
  2. Session 2: 7 May 2003 to 2 April 2007
  3. Session 3: 9 May 2007 to 22 March 2011
  4. Session 4: 11 May 2011 to 23 March 2016
  5. Session 5: 12 May 2016 to 5 May 2021
  6. Current session: 12 May 2021 to 20 December 2024
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Displaying 541 contributions

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Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Meeting date: 14 June 2022

Emma Roddick

A lot of my questions have been gone through in great detail, so I will try to avoid retreading.

My question is for Naomi Cunningham. We have heard comments about self-ID and concerns that that could mean expanding the group of people who would be able to obtain a GRC. I am aware that previous witnesses at the committee have described the current process as discriminatory. If there are barriers for people who do not have a lot of money or who live somewhere without easy access to gender identity services, is it not incumbent on us to do exactly that—to expand the group of people who are able to obtain a GRC?

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Meeting date: 14 June 2022

Emma Roddick

I will move on to that. There have been quite a few comments on the need for a standard to be met or for proof to be standardised. However, the experience of trans people is as diverse as that of cisgender people. Is it possible, while also respecting trans people’s right to privacy and dignity, to prescribe an experience that they must go through or prove that they have experienced in order to have their identity recognised by the state?

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Meeting date: 14 June 2022

Emma Roddick

I suppose that that is my point. The only connecting theme for trans people is that they have changed their gender, so we cannot say, “Well, you must have done this as well.”

I will move on to other issues. Naomi Cunningham commented on the long-term effects on the lives of children who transition and change gender. Do you have any reflections on the long-term effects of 16 to 18-year-olds moving on to a new life at university or somewhere else and having to start that life while living in a gender that is not theirs?

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Meeting date: 14 June 2022

Emma Roddick

To be clear about the financial side, the current gatekeeping includes the need to access services, which can be financially prohibitive. There can also be fees associated with seeking medical proof of what a person has been through. There are lots of recognised costs to going through the process as it currently exists, besides applying for a GRC and paying the £5. That is what I was referring to.

If trans people are coming forward to say that barriers exist for them, do we not have a duty to take those barriers down? After Naomi Cunningham, I invite Karon Monaghan to respond to that.

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Meeting date: 14 June 2022

Emma Roddick

I want to pin down what you have said. Do you believe that a 16-year-old can be trans?

11:30  

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Meeting date: 14 June 2022

Emma Roddick

Okay. Thank you. That is me, convener.

Social Justice and Social Security Committee

Subordinate Legislation

Meeting date: 9 June 2022

Emma Roddick

Sorry, convener, can you give me a moment?

Social Justice and Social Security Committee

Subordinate Legislation

Meeting date: 9 June 2022

Emma Roddick

I am aware that SCOSS was concerned about the proposal to backdate to the start of the ADP claim rather than to when a change of circumstance is reported. As the natural case transfer by definition applies to those who are coming forward with a change of circumstances, what difference is there likely to be between those two dates?

Social Justice and Social Security Committee

Medium-term Financial Strategy and Resource Spending Review

Meeting date: 9 June 2022

Emma Roddick

I found it helpful that you identified that lower income households will face higher inflation relative to high earners because of the cost of essential items. Is inflation on essential items expected to stabilise as quickly as the CPI overall estimate of 2 per cent by 2024, or will it be quicker or slower?

Social Justice and Social Security Committee

Subordinate Legislation

Meeting date: 9 June 2022

Emma Roddick

Hello, minister. I realise that the hope is that people understand that they might be better off on ADP than they are on DLA and opt to transfer when they can. What challenges will be presented with regard to managed migration if a lot of cases end up not transferring through the natural migration process? What might be the negative effects for claimants who do not move?