Lawfulness of DWP policies on information about gender reassignment clients

R (C) v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions [2017] UKSC 72

The Supreme Court has considered the lawfulness of policies used by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) concerning the retention and treatment of information about the gender reassignment of its customers. The court held that the DWP had a legitimate aim in retaining such information in its database, and had set up special procedures to restrict access to the records of customers who needed additional protection. Therefore, although the policies involved some intrusion into privacy, they were proportionate and were not unlawful under the Gender Recognition Act 2004, the Human Rights Act 1998 or the Equality Act 2010.