The 'singular they’ and the legal minefield of gender neutral pronouns Andrew Stevenson
over 3 years in TheScotsman
The recent For Women Scotland case showed how emphasising gender in legislation can lead to a guddle. Most Acts try to avoid gender altogether. The Interpretation Act 1978 states that words importing the masculine gender are taken to include the feminine and vice versa unless the contrary intention appears. In 2007, then leader of the House of Commons, Jack Straw, advised that Parliamentary counsel must adopt “gender neutral drafting” of legislation. In 2018 the Scottish Parliamentary Counsel Office issued similar guidance.