Scrapping of misogyny law confirmed

Ministers said on Friday that there was not enough time to draft the law in the wake of the Supreme Court judgment on the definition of a woman in the Equality Act.

SNP minister Jamie Hepburn said the government was “committed to ensuring people are protected from misogynistic abuse”, however, it is “a complex area of policy and law”.

Instead, an amendment will be made to the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021 to include women, despite the fact this could have been done when that law was drafted.

The government said it had not included women in the Act because it wanted to create separate legislation for them but did not indicate why it wanted separate legislation.

“Women, like everyone else, are already protected from threatening or abusive behaviour in law,” a spokesperson for the Scottish government said.

“We have consulted on a Misogyny Bill which will build on these general laws and create a new focus on protecting women and girls to address criminal behaviour motivated purely by misogyny.”

Scottish Conservative deputy leader Rachael Hamilton said: “The misogyny bill is just the latest in a litany of paused, ditched or botched Sturgeon-era policies. It’s little surprise it has been scrapped. Who would trust SNP ministers to legislate to criminalise misogyny when they can’t even say what a woman is?

“Misogyny remains a serious problem and it’s crucial that women and girls are protected from all forms of threatening and abusive behaviour in a way that safeguards their rights.”