Petition · Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
Add birth sex to special category data under GDPR
Closed
52 signatures
What the petition asks
Under UK GDPR, special category data is personal data that needs more protection because it is sensitive. It includes "sexual orientation", which can protect gay people; this does not protect transgender people. We urge the Government to add birth sex to the list.
A Supreme Court judgement found that a person's sex for the purpose of the Equality Act is their "biological sex" and that this describes sex at birth. We are concerned about how that information will be recorded and verified for transgender people. We feel making vulnerable groups easy to identify can increase the risk of harassment and discrimination. As with sexuality or religion, we believe birth sex should be "need to know", and protected from potentially accidental/malicious disclosure.
Timeline
| 10 Oct 2025 | Petition opened for signatures |
| 10 Apr 2026 | Closed to new signatures |
Key facts
Signatures
52
Status
Closed
Department
Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
Opened
10 Oct 2025
Closed
10 Apr 2026
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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 19 Aug 2026.