Scottish Government Announces Nonbinary Equality Plan

The Scottish government has announced a first-of-its-kind plan to improve the lives of nonbinary people. This five-year plan, which aims to greatly increase equality and reduce nonbinary discrimination in all aspects of life, has been well-received by many LGBTQ+ organizations and charities.

In 2020, the Scottish government decided not to extend legal recognition to people with nonbinary identities. In response, the Scottish Government’s Working Group on Non-Binary Equality, an organization comprising of academics, charity leaders, and nonbinary people, published a report on the state of nonbinary rights and oppression, recommending what actions could be taken to greatly improve equality in Scotland. These recommendations were taken by the Scottish government, which published the Non-Binary Equality Action Plan on November 16.

Some of the improvements the plan aims to make include training in fertility preservation and nonbinary healthcare needs. In addition, the plan commits to removing barriers from participation in governmental decision-making, including making name changing processes easier and researching paths to legal recognition of nonbinary identities. Over the course of five years, the aim is for the plan to “contribute to improving the lives of nonbinary people in Scotland and begin to tackle some of the challenges that they currently face in their everyday lives,” in the words of Equalities Minister Emma Roddick.

Scotland has historically been ahead of the curve in terms of LGBTQ+ acceptance. In 2021, it became the first nation in the world to officially teach LGBTQ+ history in the classroom. Nonetheless, the Non-Binary Equality Action Plan has been a long time coming—and very well-received. Seven national LGBTQ+ charities and organizations, including Stonewall Scotland, Equality Network, and LGBT Youth Scotland, have welcomed the plan with open arms.

Vic Valentine, manager of Scottish Trans, says, “It is really positive to see this Action Plan published, and to see that the Scottish Government has made public, concrete, and measurable commitments to changes that will make nonbinary people’s lives better … We look forward to working with nonbinary people across Scotland to challenge the Government to turn these commitments in to real change.”