Supreme Court sex ruling: Northern Ireland 'not in state of limbo' as Equality Commission says its advice will not be statutory

​Since the UK’s top court ruled that sex is defined by biology not gender identity under equality laws in Great Britain, a number of public bodies in NI have avoided taking action to protect single sex facilities – saying that they will wait for advice from the commission (ECNI).

Its position confirms that laws are already in place and employers can act now. It says that it is “for each organisation to consider its own policies” and has not said employers must wait for its advice.

The News Letter asked ECNI if it is legal for organisations to take action in advance of its guidance and what the legal status of that advice would be.

A spokesperson said “It is for each organisation to consider its own policies and where they act, they must do so lawfully and ensure they do not discriminate unlawfully against any person who has the protection of equality law.

“The guidance will be advisory guidance. It will outline advice that the Commission recommends. This will not be statutory guidance, meaning that it will not impose legal obligations on employers and service providers.”

A TUV spokesperson said “This is welcome clarification from the Equality Commission that the situation in Northern Ireland is not in a state of limbo.

“Organisations both can and should act to update their policies in line with the judgement of the Supreme Court which gives clarity on the defence of female only spaces such as toilets and changing rooms.

“One hopes that the political parties at Stormont and ideologically driven journalists who have peddled misinformation on this topic will take note - particularly ahead of a debate in the Assembly on Monday”.

After having initially decided to follow the Supreme Court ruling, officials at Fermanagh and Omagh council later apologised and expressed regret to the “LGBTQIA+ community” for any “hurt or distress” caused by media reporting of their initial decision.