Statement on the Independent review of data, statistics and research on sex and gender

The Lesbian Project welcomes yesterday’s publication of an independent review of data, statistics and research on sex and gender, commissioned by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) and carried out by Professor Alice Sullivan of UCL and her team. We note certain findings of particular importance in the review for lesbians:

• Professor Sullivan’s review finds that there has been a widespread “replacement of sex questions with gender-identity questions” in data collection, and that the “meaning of sex is no longer stable in administrative or major survey data. This instability is evident across key policy areas including health and justice. This has led to a widespread loss of data on sex.”

• Lesbians are a group defined by sex, in two respects: only females sexually oriented towards other females are lesbians. Where data collection about sex is confused, and/or replaced by collection about gender identity, this has a detrimental effect on data collection about lesbians, specifically, dramatically reducing robustness. Our 2024 report used the 2021 Census for England and Wales as a high-profile case study of this problem and described the impacts on lesbians and other sexual minorities. Professor Sullivan’s review contributes further examples of poor survey design and spurious measurements of the lesbian population, including the 2017 LGBT survey by the Government Equalities Office.

• Accurate data collection about lesbians is not just a source of interesting information; it feeds into policy recommendations and funding decisions. We repeat our general call to researchers and policymakers to remove the ideological bias from current practice in data gathering about LGBT people, including lesbians; recognise that accurate information on sex is vital for any research on sexual orientation; and remedy data collection policies forthwith.