A UK council has sparked fury after claiming that not all “pregnant individuals” identify as women. Officials at Bristol City Council, which has a Green Party majority among councillors, have demanded women should be referred to as “people with ovaries” and that “she/her” pronouns should be avoided when discussing pregnancy. Women’s rights groups have since labelled their efforts as “deeply offensive to women”.
The council is also calling for support for biological men who wish to engage in “chestfeeding” their children, as well as the term “maternity” to become more inclusive for people who are transgender. The “nonsense” demands come after an Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) consultation for changes to its guidance on equality. In April, the Supreme Court ruled that the terms “woman” and “sex” only refer to biological women and sex in gender legislation.
Bristol City Council officials have since raised objections, claiming that gendered language may risk causing “additional emotional and psychological distress” towards transgender men and people who identify as non-binary.
A submission by officers from the authority reads: “We strongly advise the use of more inclusive language such as using ‘they/them’ to refer to all individuals or include other identities to reflect the diversity of individuals who access maternity or paternity services.
“This could include ‘people with ovaries’ or the term ‘people who use paternity services’.”
“The statement that pregnancy and maternity protections ‘apply on the basis of biological sex’ is too vague.
“It is unclear whether it refers to anyone capable of pregnancy, or only those who were assigned female at birth.
“If protections apply to anyone who can become pregnant including some trans men and non-binary people, this should be stated clearly.”
Women’s rights groups have since condemned the move. Heather Binning, director of the Women’s Rights Network (WRN), said: “In their efforts to be inclusive, they not only manage to be scientifically illiterate but also offensive to women.”
Maya Forstater, chief executive of Sex Matters, emphasised that the comments were offensive, adding: “The move to erase sex-based language for women around pregnancy, maternity and breastfeeding protections and services is not only nonsense from a scientific perspective, but deeply offensive to women.”
A spokesman for Bristol City Council said they have “undertaken to review relevant policies and procedures following publication of the updated statutory guidance from the EHRC”.
