London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Sep 16, 2025

Scottish police confirm male-born rape suspects are recorded as female, where requested, regardless of legal status

Scottish police confirm male-born rape suspects are recorded as female, where requested, regardless of legal status

Transgender women suspected of sexual crimes are recorded as female by Police Scotland, even if they didn’t legally change their sex. Critics say the practice deceives the public about crime prevalence.
As the Scottish government is considering ways to make it easier than ever for people to change their legal sex, skeptics say the drive to embrace trans rights is often going in the wrong direction. One latest example is the way Police Scotland records suspects’ self-identified gender rather than biological sex, even when the alleged crime in question is rape.

UK law defines rape as penetration of the vagina, anus or month with a penis without the victim’s consent. When such an act is committed or attempted by “a male who self-identifies as a woman,” Police Scotland would register this as a rape or attempted rape, but the alleged perpetrator would be “recorded as a female on relevant police systems.” The law enforcement agency said this in response to a Freedom of Information Act request. “Male” in this case means “a person who does not have a gender recognition certificate and has not changed their legal sex,” as per the request.

The explanation was revealed earlier this week by the Edinburgh-based policy analysts Murray Blackburn. The group’s Lucy Hunter Blackburn cited it in an opinion piece explaining how she believes the practice distorts crime statistics and thus misinforms the public on crime policy issues. A better approach would be to record the biological sex and possibly seperately the gender, the group says.

The recording policy “evolved as best practice and ensures all people are treated fairly and with respect,” Police Scotland said in 2019. It also seems to contradict what Scottish Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf told MSP Johann Lamont in a letter reported by the Times on Sunday. There, he said a person born male would need a full gender recognition certificate – “and so is legally female” – for that person to be statistically recorded as a female.

Earlier in January, Lamont questioned Yousaf about a draft guidance by Scotland’s chief statistician, which recommends that self-identified gender rather than biological or legal sex should be recorded by the government bodies, “except potentially where there is direct relevance to a person’s medical treatment.” Lamont asked how the government expects to “measure the scale of offending by men” and the effect of preventive measures if it won’t track the biological sex of the offenders. Yousaf said it was his understanding that the rape statistics are supposed to be an exception to the guideline.

Treatment of trans women by the criminal justice system is a thorny issue. Trans rights activists tend to dismiss any doubts about giving such people all the privileges of those who were born female as transphobic. Critics point out uncomfortable facts to argue that this approach is inherently harmful towards biological women. For instance, British prison statistics indicate that trans inmates are five times more likely to commit a sex attack on other prisoners at female jails.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
Tens of Thousands of Young Chinese Get Up Every Morning and Go to Work Where They Do Nothing
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
The German Owner of Politico Mathias Döpfner Eyes Further U.S. Media Expansion After Axel Springer Restructuring
Suspect Arrested: Utah Man in Custody for Charlie Kirk’s Fatal Shooting
In a politically motivated trial: Bolsonaro Sentenced to 27 Years for Plotting Coup After 2022 Defeat
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
Starmer Establishes Economic ‘Budget Board’ to Centralise Policy and Rebuild Business Trust
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Trinidad Leader Applauds U.S. Naval Strike and Advocates Forceful Action Against Traffickers
Kim Jong Un Oversees Final Test of New High-Thrust Solid-Fuel Rocket Engine
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Supreme Court temporarily allows Trump to pause billions in foreign aid
Charlie Sheen says his father, Martin Sheen, turned him in to the police: 'The greatest betrayal possible'
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
×