The UK government has made it easier for people to change their ‘gender’ by moving the process online and reducing the fee from £140 to just £5.

Equalities Minister Liz Truss used the “Build Back Better” slogan to announce the move to make the application process “kinder and more straightforward” for transgender people.

“As we build back better, we want transgender people to be free to live and to prosper in modern Britain,” Truss said.

“In the National LGBT Survey, 34% of transgender people told us that the cost of applying for a certificate was holding them back from doing so.

“Today we have removed that barrier, and I am proud that we have made the process of getting a certificate fairer, simpler and much more affordable,” she added.

Under the existing Gender Recognition Act, a transgender person has to undergo a two-year waiting period, a review or appearance before a specialist panel as well as pay £140, before being able to change their gender legally.