A PETITION calling for non-binary to become an official gender is to be debated by MPs.
More than 10,000 Scots were among the 140,000 people who signed the petition to the UK Government which asked for non-binary to be made a gender identity on gender recognition certificates.
People who are non-binary do not identify as men or women, and the term is used to encompass a range of gender identities that are not just "masculine" or "feminine".
The debate will be held next week at a petitions committee meeting.
The latest petition states: “Have non-binary be included as an option under the GRP (Gender Recognition Panel)/ GRC (Gender Recognition Certificate), in order to allow those identifying as non-binary to be legally seen as their true gender identity. As well as having ‘non-binary’ be seen as a valid transgender identity.”
It continues: "There is no option of ‘non-binary’ on legal forms, ignoring members of the population.
"This requires the Government to pass a law that publicly recognises ‘non-binary’ as a part of the GRP under the Gender Recognition Act, aka a legal and valid gender identity option.
"By recognising non-binary as a valid gender identity, it would aid in the protection of non-binary individuals against transphobic hate crimes, and would ease gender dysphoria experienced by non-binary people."
Ministers at Westminster have previously said they do not plan to reform the Gender Recognition Act but the Scottish Government is still proposing to do so.
The Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill was introduced earlier this year, pledging to reduce the time a person has to live in their acquired gender from two years to three months, with a further three-month “reflection period” before they can receive a gender recognition certificate, as well as lowering the age one can be obtained from 18 to 16.
The bill has sparked a heated debate with some suggesting it could impact on women's rights, while many in support of reforming the GRA claim objectors are "transphobic".
Responding to the petition, the UK Government said in a statement: "As set out in the response to the Gender Recognition Act consultation, there are no plans to make changes to the 2004 Act."
The debate will be held on Monday, May 23, at 4.30 pm.
