Every person, no matter their gender or their background, has the right to be referred to in a way that allows them to access public services safely and without fear.  

When we collect data about people’s gender and sex, we need systems that respect how individuals wish to be described, recognising that not everyone’s bodies – both those who are trans and those who are not – fit neatly within a sex or gender binary.  

We are concerned that, if the Sullivan Review’s recommendations are implemented, public data collection would become less reliable – denying trans people the right to privacy and failing to accurately record the diversity of human sex and gender characteristics.  

Equally, denying young people the right to change their NHS gender marker would create more barriers for trans youth, who already experience poor health outcomes, to access healthcare services.  

What is the Sullivan Review? 

The Sullivan Review was commissioned under the former Conservative Government to review how public bodies collect data on people’s sex and gender.  

The Review was announced as part of speech to Conservative Party Conference, where former minister, Michelle Donelan, expressed unevidenced concerns that recognition of the existence of transgender people was “damaging” scientific research.  

The minister handpicked Alice Sullivan to lead the review, an adviser to an organisation widely considered to be an anti-trans campaign group.  

What were the Review’s key recommendations? 

The Review argued that when public bodies collect data about people’s sex, that the only categories available should be “male” or ”female” and this should be what a person was assigned at birth. 

She argues this should include intersex individuals who should be considered either male or female, and transgender people with a Gender Recognition Certificate who have changed their legal sex.  

The author states that a person’s “gender” is not a data category that should be collected, despite this being a widely understood and important way that academics undertake research.   

What does this mean for NHS gender markers? 

In the review, it is recommended that the NHS should not allow individuals to change their gender markers if they transition, something that Health Secretary, Wes Streeting has expressed support for.  

If implemented, this could mean that young people will no longer be able to ask their GPs to have their medical records reflect their self-described gender or sex. 

What is Mermaids’ view? 

We are deeply concerned by the Sullivan review, and the implications for trans young people should its recommendations be implemented.  

We absolutely support the need to improve how public bodies like the NHS record how different body parts can lead to increased clinical risk. However, a simple male-female sex marker oversimplifies human diversity.  

Many people do not have gender and sex characteristics typical of their sex assigned at birth – like people who have had a mastectomy or hysterectomy, or intersex individuals.  

Similarly, a trans woman who has taken oestrogen has an increased risk of breast cancer, something that would not be picked up a binary sex categorisation.  

We know that many trans young people would simply avoid accessing non-gender related medical care rather than risk being misgendered or having their privacy violated regarding trans status should their gender marker not reflect their gender. 

What next?  

The recommendations of this review are an attempt by a small group of campaigners to deny the existence of trans and intersex people, not about improving healthcare outcomes for all. 

We are supporting calls from organisation like TransActual and the Feminist Gender Equality Network (FGEN) for the current Labour Government to reject this report and its recommendations.  

Instead, this Government should be working with trans and intersex communities themselves, to create systems that enable everyone to be reliably included in data collection, particularly ensuring trans youth can access supportive healthcare and screening services that enable them to grow up happy and healthy.