Trans Rights - Human Rights
An Open Letter to my MP
Dear Marie Goldman,
I am writing as a new constituent, having recently moved to Chelmsford, to raise urgent concerns about the EHRC's updated Statutory Code of Practice for Services, Public Functions and Associations, laid before Parliament on 21 May 2026. As the Liberal Democrat Women and Equalities Spokesperson, I hope you will consider raising these matters before the 40-day scrutiny window closes.
I write not only as a constituent but as a theologian and trans person who has published on trans and non-binary lives and Christian ethics - most recently in "Trans Formations: Grounding Theology in Trans and Non-Binary Lives" (SCM Press, 2024). I am a minister of the United Reformed Church and work for the Methodist Church.
My primary concern is that the updated Code renders the Gender Recognition Certificate effectively meaningless. A trans person who has undergone the full legal process of gender recognition still retains their birth sex for the purposes of the Equality Act 2010 - a legal erasure of our recognised identity, and a statement that what Parliament granted us is not, in practice, real. This poses significant risks to our human rights, including potential breaches of articles 1, 2, 6, 7, 12, 18, 19, 20, 23, 24, 25 and 27.
From a theological perspective, my concern is grounded in the concept of the imago Dei (the image of God): the conviction that each person, in the particularity of our embodied life, reflects something of the divine. Legislation that strips away our legal recognition and licenses exclusion on the basis of birth sex does not only cause practical harm - it communicates that our identity is not legitimate, not fully human. That is a theological wrong, as well as a legal one.
As a trans person, my concern is rooted in over 15 years of struggle to be myself in a country where trans personhood has long been threatened. I have experienced verbal, sexual and physical abuse, lack of privacy and dignity, lack of equal access to healthcare, difficulties around employability and more. Since the Supreme Court ruling which initiated the recent round of culture wars I have experienced unprecedented difficulties accessing healthcare and public spaces. I am worried that this will only get worse.
I recognise, however, that I have significant privilege and that many trans people in the UK are experiencing significantly worse conditions. I am a white, masculine presenting trans person who has had intermittent access to HRT for the past 16 years. By contrast femme/female, Black and young trans people experience more significant harm. A recent FOI request found that the trans youth suicide rate has surged as a result of changes in healthcare provision. This tragedy only adds to the sense of uncertainty, fear and isolation that trans people are feeling.
I am therefore asking that you use your platform to call for Parliament to debate and scrutinise this Code before it comes into force. Trans people in Chelmsford and across the country deserve to know our elected representatives will stand up for our dignity and legal protection. Your record in this area is encouraging, but we need urgent action at this time.
I would be glad to speak with you further. I am contactable at clare-younga@methodistchurch.org.uk or alex@1227.co.uk. I am regularly in London, as well as living in Chelmsford, and would be very happy to meet to discuss constructive ways to support trans people's human rights.
Yours sincerely,
Revd Dr Alex Clare-Young
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