Trans inmates with ‘male genitalia’ banned from women’s prisons
It follows an announcement last October of plans to reform the policy.
The UK Justice Secretary, Dominic Raab, has said that trans prisoners with “male genitalia” are banned from women’s prisons.
It follows an announcement last October of plans to reform the policy. The policy will also apply to trans prisoners who have been convicted of a sexual offence.
Raab has said in a statement on Wednesday (25 January) that exemptions will happen but for “only the most truly exceptional cases.”
He continued: “The safety of all prisoners is paramount. These changes will ensure a sensitive and common-sense approach to meeting the needs of women in custody, while we continue to ensure that transgender prisoners are appropriately supported in whichever estate they are located in.”
An updated policy framework is due to be published soon, which will offer guidance for implementation. The policy will take effect when that framework has been published.
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said 90% of trans women prisoners are housed in men’s prisons and that “most do not request a move to a women’s prison.”
It added, “There is no obligation to move transgender prisoners according to their wishes.”
The statement also said that trans women without a Gender Recognition Certificate are sent to male prisons.
Any trans women already in women’s prisons will be assessed before possibly being moved.
The MoJ reported in November that in the year ending March 2022, there were 230 trans prisoners. There were 197 the year before.
187 of the 230 recorded their legal gender as male and 43 as female.