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A barmy idea to scrap the titles Mr and Mrs is being considered at a city hall – so people do not have to decide their gender.

Councillors want to stop using the terms on the authority’s documents so transgender residents are not upset by having to choose one of the “useless” tags.

But the proposals have been slammed by Tory councillor Dawn Barnett who said: “It’s completely ludicrous and shows a lack of respect. How are they going to address letters properly?”

Brighton and Hove city council’s deputy leader, Phelim MacCafferty, is on the panel behind the controversial plans for Britain’s gay capital.

Mr MacCafferty, from the Green Party which runs the authority in East Sussex, said: “Trans people aren’t necessarily male or female and sometimes don’t want to be defined by their gender.

"Putting Mr and Mrs on a form is completely useless.”

And transgender activist Steph Scott said: “Being called Mr or Mrs forces me to choose between genders.

"It’s assuming people live in a binary world and it pigeonholes people.”

The council will make a decision on the proposal in December.