Labour-run Welsh government is ‘deviously’ trying to introduce gender self-identification ‘by the back door’, women’s rights campaigners claim 

• Campaigners say Welsh Labour plans make ‘farce’ of gender quotas for Senedd 
• There are fears Wales could follow Scotland and allow people to self-identify 

Women’s rights campaigners have accused the Labour-run Welsh government of a ‘devious’ attempt to introduce gender self-identification ‘by the back door’.

Concerns have been raised about the wording of a leaked draft of legislation on gender quotas designed to increase the number of women in the Welsh parliament.

It states that the definition of ‘a woman’ includes a transgender woman. 

However, to be classed as such, a man need only to be ‘proposing to undergo’ a change in their ‘physiological or other attributes of sex’. 

The Welsh government said the draft Bill’s wording was incorrect, but did not deny the premise of the plans. Pictured, the exterior of the Senedd

The campaigners say this makes ‘a farce’ of the gender quotas, and could end up with the Welsh Parliament – known as the Senedd – filled with men who say they are women in order to get on the ballot paper at elections.

They fear Labour in Wales could emulate the SNP’s attempt to allow trans people to legally change gender without a medical diagnosis, which was blocked by Westminster earlier this year.

Cathy Larkman, of campaign group Women’s Rights Network Wales, said: ‘The Gender Quotas Bill should be about improving the representation of women on electoral lists and potentially selection for the Senedd.

‘However, what it will actually achieve, based upon the detail of the draft Bill we have seen, is likely to be males self-identifying as women in order to greatly improve their chances of selection, and thereby muscling actual women out.’

Heather Binning (pictured) said the plans were ‘self-ID by the back door’, adding: ‘It must be resisted’

Heather Binning, UK founder of WRN, said it was ‘self-ID by the back door’, adding: ‘Attempting to bring gender self-ID in on the back of another imminent piece of legislation that purports to benefit women is devious and disingenuous. 

‘It must be resisted.’

The draft legislation defines a transgender woman as ‘a person who is proposing to undergo, is undergoing or has undergone a process (or part of a process) for the purpose of reassigning [their] sex to female by changing physiological or other attributes of sex’.

The Welsh government said the draft Bill’s wording was incorrect, but did not deny the premise of the plans. 

A spokesman said: ‘Our proposed model for quotas is designed to maximise the chances of achieving a Senedd comprised of at least 50 per cent women. Work is ongoing on the Bill.’

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has dropped the party’s commitment to allowing people to ‘self-ID’ as the opposite sex without a medical diagnosis.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has told government departments to lay off diversity managers if they want to take on new staff under his ‘one-in, one-out’ hiring freeze, The Daily Telegraph reported.

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