A ruckus over transgender rights in the place where the wearing of skirts by men has for centuries been taken as a sign of masculinity might seem like perfect fodder for a late-night talk show, but a fresh row over transgender criminals has left no one in Scotland laughing. It has also thrown Scotland’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon of the Scottish National Party, to the fire as she struggles to avoid looking dizzy after a swift reversal on the hot-button issue of transgender prisoner policy.

Last week, Ms. Sturgeon, an advocate of transgender rights, said that a transgender woman convicted of rape would be transferred out of an all-female prison due to  concerns about safety risk to other inmates.

One of the two thorny cases that precipitated the crisis of credibility for Ms. Strugeon and her devolved Scottish government concerned Isla Bryson, who was convicted last week in the rapes of two women, in 2016 and 2019. At the time of the crimes, she had a male identity.

Bryson has “transitioned” since then, and as a woman would have to be placed in a women’s prison. Yet following a backlash from activists, politicians, and even the United Nations, Ms. Sturgeon gave ground, telling the Scottish parliament, “Given the understandable public and parliamentary concern in this case, I can confirm to Parliament that this prisoner will not be held in Cornton Vale Women’s Prison.”

Fresh off the heels of that kerfuffle came another, when a biologically male prisoner who is currently named Tiffany Scott was approved for a move to a women’s prison. That individual had stalked a 13-year-old girl and later, while inside a men’s prison, attacked female staff. On Saturday, the Scottish Tories called the decision to permit the transfer “absolutely appalling” and said it would pose a “grave risk” to the safety of women. 

By Sunday the make-up had come off and the Scottish government solidified the about-face: Not only will no newly convicted transgender prisoners with histories of violence against women be placed in female prisons, but also no transgender person already in custody will be moved to a female prison from a male facility. The BBC reported that when asked if she would apologize for her government’s handling of the controversy, Ms. Sturgeon cited difficult issues and said, “I don’t think there is anything for that.”

The Scottish justice minister, Keith Brown, said, “We must not allow any suggestion to take root that trans women pose an inherent threat to women. Predatory men are the risk to women. However, as with any group in society, a small number of trans women will offend and be sent to prison.”

The leader of the Scottish Conservatives, Douglas Ross, said on Twitter that “a rapist who is given access to a women’s room is a threat.” He described Mr. Brown’s decision as a “screaming about-face” and in a separate tweet said, “Nicola Sturgeon is all over the place, trying to explain her government’s policy. Violent men, seeking to abuse the system, are not women.”

Reuters reported that Mr. Brown said that while the Scottish Prison Service would be reviewing its policies, these had not been changed by the passage of Scotland’s Gender Recognition Reform Bill. That measure was approved a few weeks ago in the Scottish parliament, but was blocked by the British government on the grounds it could adversely affect gender equality issues across the United Kingdom.

Scotland’s decentralized parliament can make its own laws, but London can veto if it is deemed that a piece of legislation could interfere with matters that fall within national competence. The veto of Scotland’s gender law represented the first instance of Westminster using its veto power.

The move has deepened rifts between Scotland and Prime Minister Sunak’s government, which are already at loggerheads over whether Scotland has the right to hold another referendum on independence. Ms. Sturgeon characterized London’s blocking of the gender legislation a “head-on attack” on the Scottish parliament. 

The law, passed in December, would have made Scotland the first nation in the United Kingdom to support a self-identification process when changing gender. Medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria would no longer have been necessary, and the minimum age would be lowered to 16 years from 18.

In Britain, there is significant movement afoot against the dismantling of barriers to self-determination of one’s own sex. One prominent TERF, an acronym for trans-exclusive radical feminist — that is, feminists who do not see trans women as women — is author J.K. Rowling, who also clearly opposed the gender law passed in Scotland. Her argument is essentially that if people are allowed to determine their gender themselves, it could make it easier for men to pretend to be female and to break into women’s rooms and potentially rape women there.

The “Harry Potter” author may feel as if Ms. Sturgeon had received some comeuppance, writing on Twitter, “Remember Sturgeon, her government, and her supporters have always insisted that it was ridiculous to imagine anyone would dress in women’s clothing to gain access to women and girls who are at risk.”

With some writerly ribbing, she added, “I don’t know about you, but excluding women from women’s prisons just because they’ve got penises, male pattern baldness and have committed a couple of rapes seems awfully TERFy to me.”