Leading human rights organisation in Europe, ILGA, has said that the trans healthcare system in Ireland is “inadequate”.

ILGA-Europe’s Annual Review details the human rights situation of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex (LGBT+) people across the 49 European countries, and the five countries of Central Asia.

According to Evelyne Paradis, Executive Director of ILGA-Europe: “It is not all bad news. The issue of bodily integrity for intersex people continues to gain more prominence on the political agenda of governments and institutions. 2019 was a year of positive developments for rainbow families in the region, with an expansion of family rights in a few countries; and important advancements continue to be made on reforming or establishing legal gender recognition procedures, even if in many countries progress is slowing down.

“However, the lived reality of LGBTI people in many parts of Europe and Central Asia is increasingly difficult and for a large part remains invisible, even to organisations like ILGA-Europe. Action is needed. Governments still have so much to do, from adopting laws that guarantee the protection of people’s rights and giving public authorities the means to translate policy into practice across sectors, to leading by example in having a discourse promoting social acceptance and inclusion.

“By making people aware of such a broad and nuanced picture, which is constantly shifting and evolving, the ILGA-Europe Annual Review aims to give a sense of the enormity of issues and areas that affect the lives of people, which will continue to require attention, especially in a context where LGBTI people are being targeted and vulnerability is heightened.”

In their annual review of the situation of LGBT+ people in Ireland, they express concern “that trans youth under 16 will have no access to (legal gender recognition) and those not identifying with binary genders will have no way to get legal recognition of their gender identity”.

The ILGA Ireland review states that in terms of trans healthcare “no improvements have been made since the 2017 report of the Irish Commission for Human Rights and Equality, which stated that trans healthcare is in violation of the European Social Charter, is inadequate, and that ‘treatment is not guaranteed in practice’.”

In its annual review, the group warns that while progress for LGBT+ people in Europe “paints an image of the region as a leading light” for rights and equality, these developments are “a surface impression that does not tell a complete or accurate story”.

The report’s findings paint “a complex picture that diverges from the widespread narrative that all is well for LGBTI people in large parts of Europe”.

The review focuses on a number of key issues facing Ireland’s LGBT+ community in terms of Direct Provision, sex education, hate speech, equality for LGBT+ families, sexual health and the National LGBTI+ inclusion strategy.

Read the full annual review for Ireland here.