Predatory men can take advantage of Scotland’s new gender law, says worried caller
21 December 2022, 19:18 | Updated: 21 December 2022, 19:21
This Tom Swarbrick caller claims new law endangers women
“There are evil men out there,” said the caller who feels there is nothing in the gender recognition reform bill that will protect women from predatory men.
A Tom Swarbrick caller has shared her concern over Scotland's new Gender Recognition Reform Act, saying predatory men could use this to their advantage.
The law will allow teenagers as young as 15 to start legally changing their gender without parental consent.
This comes after members of the Scottish Parliament were heckled on Tuesday, with shouts of “Shame on you!” after they voted against an amendment which would make it more difficult for sex offenders to obtain a gender recognition certificate.
“I’m quite emotional about this”, Maggie in Scotland told Tom.
She continued: “The problem for me is - I speak as a woman - I wonder who can assure me that things won’t happen because predatory males have already committed crimes typical of male sex offenders.”
“I'm wondering, as a former victim myself, how do I know the person presenting with a beard, with whatever in a toilet is not a predatory male?” Maggie said.
The caller added: “People are forgetting in Scotland there’s a Hate Crime Bill, so I can’t ask the person if they’re female.”
Tom Swarbrick questions why political parties want to make amendments to the Gender Recognition Act.
Tom replied: “I think it's a totally legitimate and fair question to be asking, particularly from someone who’s experienced that kind of violence.
“Could you not also ask the question, if you’re in a ladies’ loo or ladies’ changing room, how do you know that every female you’re encountering there is not a predatory woman?”
Maggie replied: “Statistics show that there are very few predatory women compared to sex crimes by men.”
“If I ask a man in a ladies’ toilet just now, why is he in here, I could be reported…for being transphobic”, she added, sharing an example of how that already occurred in Aberdeen.
READ MORE: Scottish civil servants told biological sex is a 'falsehood'
She said that the Hate Crime Bill would prevent her from being able to question the individual.
“Under the law, the person who you’re asking would have their legal right to be in that room”, said Tom. “Why would you question?”
Maggie responded: “There are lots of men in many countries and they’re going into toilets, they’re pleasuring themselves, they’ve dressed in miniskirts, they've got beards, they've probably still got their genitalia.”
She reiterated that she is not saying every transgender person is predatory but believed “there are evil men out there” who will take advantage of this law.
She also said there was no mention in the act of how women would be protected in this way.
Another caller phoned in to share her upset towards women's rights and trans rights being "pitted" against one another, see that full call below or watch more on Global Player.
This caller is upset that women's rights and trans rights have been 'pitted' against each other
