Debate contribution: Custodial Facilities: Protection of Rights and Safety

Debate contribution by Mr Gerry Carroll on 20 January 2025.

MLA

Mr Gerry Carroll

Party at the time

People Before Profit Alliance

Date

20 January 2025

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

Custodial Facilities: Protection of Rights and Safety

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4744374

Read the official Assembly record

Text

I oppose the motion and the amendment. The motion talks about providing "continuous support" for the LGBTQ+ community, whilst urging the Justice Minister to force trans women into male prisons and to force trans men into women's prisons. The denial of trans and non-binary identity in prisons is inhumane. How can that be described as "continuous support" for transgender and non-binary people? I challenge those who tabled the motion on their rationale for that. The proposer of the amendment tried to solve that contradiction by completely removing any commitment to support the LGBTQ+ community, and that is pretty telling in itself. The so-called debate about trans prisoners is just another culture war fuelled by lies and fearmongering about a marginalised, oppressed community. If it were not so serious, it would be almost hilarious to hear people talk about women's rights when their parties oppose them every step of the way. Trans people are not a threat to other women or to anyone else. The fact is that none — I repeat: none — of the 24 women killed in the North in the past four years, which is a huge number, was murdered by trans people. They were killed by cisgender men. If you do not know what that means, go look it up. In fact, trans people are at a disproportionate risk of violence themselves. Transgender Europe reports that at least 350 trans and non-binary people across the world were murdered in the past year. Most of them were trans women — not a mention of them from the Members who tabled the motion and the amendment. Frankly, the debate is a complete waste of time. When there is so much work to do on ending violence against women and girls, the time would be much better spent trying to prevent misogynistic violence from the earliest possible stages.

I thank the Member for her important point. I note that. It is a positive, progressive thing, and I think that most of the women's rights organisations in the South are the same. That is a positive thing as well. I was going on to talk about groups such as HERe NI, the Women's Resource and Development Agency and the Rainbow Project, which, among others, are experts on women's rights and safety as well as the rights of LGBTQ people, and they all reject the blanket approach in the motion. Transgender people, including prisoners, have the right to be treated with dignity and respect. That includes access to appropriate clothing and gender-affirming healthcare. Beyond the lack of access to basic rights and services in prison, the Westminster Women and Equalities Committee recognised "a clear risk of harm" to transgender prisoners who are placed in prisons that do not align with their gender identity. That harm includes — I emphasise this — sexual assault, harassment, discrimination and mistreatment. People should heed those words. Given the evidence, is it in anyone's interest to force a transgender man into the female prison estate? Does anyone really think that it is wise for a transgender woman to be housed in the male prison estate where she is at high risk of experiencing physical or sexual assault and abuse? What is really motivating calls for trans people to be placed at active risk of harm? For the most part, I think, it is bigotry, misogyny and transphobia. It is also worth remembering during the debate that we cannot end transphobia without tackling the over-incarceration of people, especially the locking up of so many people who have serious mental health issues. The carceral state itself is transphobic, misogynistic, racist and oppressive at its core, and, as long as it continues to exist, the criminal legal system will deny prisoners, including trans people, the rights and dignity that they deserve. Rather than locking people up in a violent prison system, we should tackle the root causes of crime: poverty, abuse and a lack of access to education, good jobs, housing and, crucially, mental health support. We should strive for a society in which everyone's basic needs are met. That includes the needs of women, trans people and non-binary people. The motion is completely contradictory, disrespects the rights of transgender prisoners and, if acted on, would put trans prisoners in danger. I oppose it, and anyone who cares about the dignity, rights and safety of all prisoners should fundamentally oppose it too.

733 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:47 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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