Supreme Court ruling

Request Number: FOI/14695

Category: Policing Themes, Operations and Investigations – Legislation, Acts and Policies

Subject: Supreme Court ruling

Request and Answer:
Your request for information has now been considered. In respect of Section 1(1)(a) of the Act we can confirm that the Police Service of Northern Ireland does hold information to which your request relates. The decision has been taken to disclose the following.

Request 1
Under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, please supply me with full answers to each of the following questions regarding your forces policies in light of the Supreme Court ruling in the For Women Scotland case and subsequent Equality and Human Rights Commission guidance.  Has your force sent any messages to officers or staff regarding the ruling and its implications? If so, please provide a copy.

Answer
Yes.  The following communication was sent service wide by E Mail by Assistant Chief Constable McNally, Criminal Justice Department on 13th May 2025:

Dear Colleagues,

The implications for policing arising from the recent Supreme Court ruling that ‘sex’ means biological sex in the Equality Act 2010 (the Act) are currently being assessed nationally by Police Chiefs’ Council.

Within PSNI we are working closely with the NPCC and have formed our own multidisciplinary working group to study the ruling.  As ACC Justice Department, I am overseeing this group and we met for the first time on Thursday the 8th of May 2025.  Further meetings will take place in the following weeks from which I will keep you updated.

I understand there are strong feelings and different views about the Supreme Court’s decision, but our priority as an organisation will be to ensure we continue to fulfil our statutory obligations of inclusion, respect and dignity for everyone in our service and the wider community. 

If you have any concerns about the ruling, need someone to talk to or require any additional support please reach out to your line managers or our support networks.

Request 2
Has your force changed or is it considering changing its policies on use of toilets/changing rooms for transgender people? If so please provide details.

Answer
No changes have been made at present. PSNI are working closely with the NPCC and have formed our own multidisciplinary working group to study the ruling.

Request 3
Has your force changed or is it considering changing its policy on search of detainees/suspects by transgender officers/staff? If so please provide details.

Answer
No changes have been made at present. PSNI are working closely with the NPCC and have formed our own multidisciplinary working group to study the ruling.

Request 4
Has your force held any meetings with external LGBT+ groups or internal LGBT+ staff networks since the ruling? If so please provide details of the groups attending and the minutes of the meeting

Answer
No but invites for multidisciplinary groups have been extended to various staff associations including LGBT+ Network. Please also see separate letter sent to the network.

If you have any queries regarding your request or the decision please do not hesitate to contact me at the e-mail address listed below. When contacting the Corporate Information Branch, please quote the reference number listed at the beginning of this letter.

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If, following an Internal Review carried out by an independent decision maker, you remain unhappy about how your request has been handled you have the right to apply in writing to the Information Commissioner, under Section 50 of the Freedom of Information Act, at ‘Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF. There are a number of other platforms you can use to contact the ICO and these can be found on the ICO’s website at the following link: Make a complaint | ICO (https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/).

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Please be advised that PSNI replies under Freedom of Information may be released into the public domain via our website @ www.psni.police.uk

Personal details in respect of your request have, where applicable, been removed to protect confidentiality.