TV Dreams

Reproduced at the request of Gender Spectrum UK…

“Gender Spectrum UK ( http://www.gsuk.org ) wish to announce the launch
of an on-line survey http://www.alisonwhelan.co.uk/pre-existing-marriage.htm to gauge the
general opinion of the position of individuals with Gender Identity
Disorder who transition from the gender assigned at birth, where the
individual is married prior to transition.

The Gender Recognition Act 2004 (GRA) created the legal right for an
individual to change the gender marker recorded on their birth
certificate, however, that Act prevented individuals who are married or
in a Civil Partnership from effecting such change until they had ended
that marriage or Civil Partnership.  The GRA provides a fast track
process to enable a person who is married to immediately enter into a
Civil Partnership following the legal end to their marriage.

This process is not without its problems as it is essential that the
entire legal process is completed in exactly the right manner and there
are also significant time and financial cost to the whole process.

For many people, the relationship and the vows made are sacrosanct
preventing them from making such a change, as this would mean ending a
sacred vow.  The process of gender reassignment is not something
undertaken lightly.  It does not affect a person’s faith and there are a
number of married couples that maintain wholly loving relationships
throughout this process and beyond.

The current requirement to end a marriage or Civil Partnership puts
significant pressure upon such relationships.  The presence of minor
children within such relationships add a further burden if there is a
forced dissolution of the existing marriage or Civil Partnership.

Gender Spectrum UK is seeking views on this issue from all interested
individuals, whether they are directly affected, indirectly affected or
if they have an interest in these matters.  To this end, a survey is
available at http://www.alisonwhelan.co.uk/pre-existing-marriage.htm to
gather such views.  The survey has identified four general solutions to
the issue and we are seeking the preferred solution from those four
options.  The four options are:

A)   The current requirement for annulment and creation of a new Civil
Partnership or marriage is satisfactory

B)   Automatic transfer to a Civil Partnership or marriage without the
formal process of annulment and registration.

C)   Retention of existing marriage or Civil Partnership with a
different name (i.e. not marriage or Civil Partnership, but something
indicating its legacy position such as ‘Legacy Partnership’ (i.e. with
no mention of marriage))

D)   Retention of existing marriage or Civil Partnership with no change
(i.e. retaining the name marriage or Civil Partnership)”