London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Jul 22, 2025

Scottish government will ask staff to put gender pronouns in emails, despite overwhelming opposition

Scottish government will ask staff to put gender pronouns in emails, despite overwhelming opposition

The Scottish government is reportedly preparing to ask civil servants to put their gender pronouns at the end of emails in an effort to boost inclusivity – despite the majority of employees opposing the idea.
According to the Telegraph newspaper, the government supports a proposal that would encourage civil servants to take a “pronoun pledge” and add their preferred pronouns – such as he/him, she/her, they/them, or even zie/zir – to their email signatures.

Though it appears that the Scottish government is moving ahead with the proposal, it has already proved to be an unpopular idea among government staffers.

A June poll of over 3,000 civil servants found that 58% did not put pronouns in their emails and probably won't, while 25% said they did not currently use preferred pronouns but would potentially be open to it in the future. Just 17% claimed to currently use them.

Following the results of the poll, Permanent Secretary to the Scottish Government Leslie Evans said in a June Q&A session that she was “disappointed” with some comments people had made about the gender pronoun email idea.

Evans said that while “what we write around our name and so on is good and helpful,” more needs to be done, and declared she feels “pretty passionately” as “a feminist but also somebody who's got some family experience of gender assignment.”

She also claimed that it was a “very important experience and learning experience” when one of her transgender colleagues shadowed her on the job a year and a half ago.

Trina Budge, the director of For Women Scotland, however, called the pronoun proposal “deeply stupid,” noting that the employee poll “showed the majority of civil servants were against this move.”

“It is sad, but not surprising, to see Ms Evans disregard this,” Budge declared, calling it “further evidence that this government only pretends to consult or openly discuss, and ditches any views which conflict with their predetermined policies.”

Arguing that the Scottish government is now leaning into “controlling, illiberal and authoritarian tendencies,” Budge warned that “in forging ahead with this or any associated coerced signing of a pledge, the Scottish Government would, potentially, be discriminating against a protected belief and also inviting sex discrimination.”

The Free Speech Union also condemned the proposal, writing, “Far from being 'inclusive' this plan creates a chilling environment for those who don't believe in gender ideology.”

Recent Freedom of Information (FOI) releases show that Edinburgh has a close relationship with the LGBT charity Stonewall, which has repeatedly received money for training staff.

In a 2017 Stonewall Workplace Equality Index submission, the government boasted that since 2015 “it has been mandatory for all our Senior Civil Service staff,” as well as “staff who are chairing recruitment and selection panels,” to “undergo unconscious bias training, which includes LGBTi awareness.”

It also delivered transgender-specific awareness training, while all civil servants are officially required to undergo “Diversity and Equality training.”

The Scottish government has been increasingly accused of taking action against free speech over the past few years. In October, a hate crime bill backed by Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf was proposed that would legally punish Scots for making “insulting” remarks – including against transgender people – even within the privacy of their own homes.

In February, a man was arrested by Scottish police after he made “an offensive tweet” about Sir Captain Tom Moore, who had recently died.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
×