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NHS trans case ruling raises pressure for guidance
Summary
A tribunal dismissed claims against a nurse and the trust but concluded that protections for transgender people do not create a positive right to use single-sex changing rooms, citing last year’s Supreme Court interpretation of the 2010 Equality Act.
Content
A tribunal dismissed claims against a nurse and found no victimisation by the trust. It also concluded that discrimination protections for transgender people do not amount to a positive right to use single-sex changing rooms. The panel rooted its reasoning in last year's Supreme Court interpretation of the 2010 Equality Act on the definition of "woman".
Known details:
- The tribunal dismissed the claims made against the nurse and found no victimisation by the trust.
- The ruling said protections from discrimination do not translate into an automatic right for a trans person to use facilities aligned with their gender rather than biological sex.
- A separate Scottish tribunal reached a different outcome in a case involving a nurse named Sandie Peggie, and that Scottish judgment is being appealed.
Summary:
The decision follows the Supreme Court's recent interpretation of the Equality Act and will be compared with the differing Scottish judgment currently under appeal. Any wider legal effect beyond the cases involved is undetermined at this time.
