The Minister for Social Protection, Joan Burton, has announced in the Dáil that she has received the report of the Gender Recognition Advisory Group (GRAG). As the Bulletin went to press, it was confirmed to PILA that the Minister referred the report to Cabinet on Tuesday 12 July, and she will launch the report at 11am tomorrow, 14 July 2011.
The Transgender Equality Network Ireland (TENI) broadly welcomed the announcement that the Minister had received the report, and its Director Broden Giambrone said that it was "a vital moment for trans rights in Ireland". TENI had urged the Minister to swiftly bring the report to Cabinet.
Readers of the Bulletin may remember the Minister's commitment to establish the GRAG committee last summer after Ireland was found to be in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) in not having a process to legally recognise the acquired gender of transgender persons. The GRAG committee invited interested parties and members of the public to submit suggestions for consideration by the committee. PILA's parent organisation, the Free Legal Advice Centres made a detailed submission to the Committee.
These events have occurred just as the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Thomas Hammerberg, launched his report on sexual orientation and gender identity. In his report, Mr Hammerberg singles out Ireland as one of the few countries in the EU without provision for gender recognition legislation.
The next PILA Bulletin will contain a feature on the GRAG report, as well as the Minister's comments on the next legislative steps for this issue.