A woman who did not have her employment contract renewed after posting a series of tweets questioning now-abandoned government plans to reform the Gender Recognition Act (GRA).
Last week a judge ruled that Maya Forstater’s “gender critical” views qualify as a protected belief under UK equalities law.
The appeal came after Maya Forstater lost her original tribunal against the Center for Global Development (CGD) in 2019, when employment judge, James Tayler, said that her approach was “not worthy of respect in a democratic society” and highlighted that she was not entitled to ignore the rights of a transgender person and the “enormous pain that can be caused by misgendering”.
Speaking of the latest ruling, Andi Herring, CEO of LCR Pride Foundation, said: “We are disappointed in the decision to overturn the initial ruling, however like many other LGBT+ organisations we’re taking the opportunity to highlight some key things that came out of this ruling – importantly the clear line that this decision still does not permit anyone, with any views, to openly use those views to harm, discriminate or harrass trans or non-binary people, and that employers have a responsibility to keep them safe.”
While being lauded as a victory by “gender critical” feminists, Mr Justice Choudhury said that the judgement did not mean “that those with gender-critical beliefs can ‘misgender’ trans persons with impunity” nor does it mean “that employers and service providers will not be able to provide a safe environment for trans persons”.
