Labour has quietly abandoned plans to simplify the legal gender change process, reportedly due to concerns over the growing support for Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.

Ministers have put on hold proposed reforms that would have made it easier for individuals to change their gender without the current requirement of approval from a panel of doctors and lawyers. A Labour source confirmed to The Guardian that these changes are not a government priority and may not be pursued before the next general election.

Although Labour has not officially scrapped its manifesto pledge to reform gender recognition laws, the absence of relevant legislation in the king’s speech indicates that ministers are not prioritizing the issue. The prime minister’s spokesperson reiterated Labour’s commitment to modernizing gender recognition rules but did not provide a timeline for action.

Sources told The Times—which first reported the story—that pushing forward with the changes would have played into Farage’s political strategy, with one source questioning: “Why would we open that can of worms for ourselves right now?”

Under the current UK-wide system established by the Gender Recognition Act, individuals seeking to legally change gender must live as their preferred gender for two years before applying for a gender recognition certificate, which is then subject to approval by a panel of doctors and lawyers. Labour’s proposed reforms aimed to remove the two-year requirement and replace the panel with a registrar system requiring signoff from just one doctor.

In a 2023 Guardian article, then-shadow equalities minister Anneliese Dodds criticized the existing process as “intrusive, outdated, and humiliating,” arguing that it subjects trans people to unnecessary bureaucracy. Labour reaffirmed this stance before last summer’s election, promising in its manifesto to modernize and simplify gender recognition laws while retaining the need for a diagnosis from a specialist doctor.

The manifesto also committed to preserving single-sex exceptions under the Equality Act and introducing a full ban on conversion practices, with the latter still expected to proceed.

Labour strategists are increasingly concerned about Reform UK’s rising popularity, with recent polls placing the party on par with both Labour and the Conservatives.

Meanwhile, in the US, Donald Trump has made anti-trans policies a key aspect of his political agenda, signing executive orders to roll back transgender protections, dismantle diversity and inclusion programs, and ban transgender athletes from competing in female sports.

In Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon’s government attempted to introduce a self-identification process in 2022, which was approved by Holyrood but later blocked by Rishi Sunak’s government in Westminster.