It’s easy to forget that so much has changed in such a short time. 

It was only in 2001 that equal age of consent came into effect in England, Scotland and Wales, and in 2009 in Northern Ireland.

In 2004, same-sex couples were legally able to enter binding, or civil, partnerships. In 2013, new laws allowed same-sex marriages in England and Wales, followed by Scotland in 2014 and Northern Ireland eventually in 2020. 

Trans people were given full legal recognition of their gender in 2005 under new legislation, meaning they could acquire a new birth certificate. However, the gender options are still 'male' and 'female'. Non-binary people still have no path to legal recognition in the UK. On 23 May 2022, Parliament debated a petition calling for a non-binary option to be included, which has been criticised by campaigners for its transphobic tropes and fear mongering, instead of focusing on gender recognition. 

In 2010, the Equality Act gave LGBT employees protections from discrimination, harassment and victimisation at work. 

Gender-neutral passports are currently still unavailable in the UK. Campaigner Christie Elan-Cane has been trying to get a passport with 'X' instead of 'M' or 'F' since 1995, and in December 2021 was rejected by the UK's Supreme Court. 

In December 2022, Scotland's devolved government passed the Gender Recognition Reform bill, which allows residents to self-declare their gender without medical evidence or proof. The UK government has blocked the legislation, but the block will be challenged in court later in 2023.   

After the Scotland bill was announced, Kemi Badenoch, Secretary of State for Business and Trade,  and President of the Board of Trade and Minister for Women and Equalities, announced a review of the list of accepted overseas gender certificates in the UK. However, no countries have been added or removed from the list yet.