Right to breastfeed in public - send the government your comments!

[edam]

Department for Communities and Local Government is consulting on a new Equalities Bill which would give women the right to breastfeed in public. www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1002882&Press NoticeID=2440

But you need to make your voice heard as it's out for consultation - if not enough people respond, maybe it won't be seen as important. Email address to send your comments is [email protected]

[ejt1764]

Just a quick question - do I have to answer all of the millions of questions on the response form, or will my responses still be included if I only complete the 'pregnancy and maternity' bit?

[edam]

Well, I just emailed the woman, tbh.

[edam]

It says: Email responses are preferred. If you are replying by email please include the words consultation response in the subject or title. These and any queries can be sent to [email protected]

So I just emailed, headed 'consultation responses'

[ejt1764]

marvellous, thanks - I have just emailed her, and included the pregnancy and maternity bit from the consultation document - it's a bit lengthy!

[eca]

thanks for the link. I've just e-mailed. really hope it goes through.

[theUrbanDryad]

sorry, but i think this bill is paying lip service to what the good people at the Breastfeeding Manifesto (and other organisations) have been trying to achieve. why only babies under 1 year old, when the WHO and Dept of Health says babies need breast milk till they're 2? it really makes me quite , and i shall be emailing my views first thing tomorrow (too tired tonight)


it is a step in the right direction though...

[edam]

quite, UD, it's ridiculous to put any time limit on it. But it's a step.

[kiskidee]

besides limiting it to women who are bf babies under a year, what gets me is the caveat of 'discreetly'.

i mean, how many of you will display more bap than is necessary when bf?

and who is to determine what is 'discreet'

tiktok's unforgettable hooter hider comes to mind here and here

[JennsterFrogLover]

Think I must be really thick. Couldn't find any reference in the actual consultation document chapter 11 Pregnancy and Maternity p151 that refers to bf in public. Could somebody point me in right direction please?

[SweetyDarling]

I followed the link, but can't see the response form - am I being dim?

[ViciousSquirrelSpotter]

OK am needing to find a site with info about non-curtailed breastfeeding, so I can attach it with my e-mail

Any links please?

[SueW]

Why do we need the right to breastfeed in public? Surely we can do what we want as long as we aren't breaking law?

I have a bit of a problem with laws that give us the right to do something.

Are we on our way to a UK constitution giving us all sorts of rights?

[tiktok]

It's not 'the right to breastfeed in public' - it's the right not to be harrassed when breastfeeding anywhere the mother has a right to be. Please, please get this right, people. You can breastfeed anywhere you like - it is not illegal.

At present, people can refuse to serve you in cafes and ask you to move and so on (though if you refuse to comply and they tried to move you, they would be guilty of assault).

It's exactly the same situation as disability, or ethnic differences, or religious differences. Everyone already has the right to drink wherever they happen to be and it is illegal to refuse them this right or to harrass them....breastfeeding mothers and babies need the same equality.

The age limit of a year and the insistence on discreet is daft, of course.

[bookwormmum]

Can't they just ask the Scottish Parliament to send them a copy of the law protecting women wanting to bf in public?

[SueW]

"Everyone already has the right to drink wherever they happen to be and it is illegal to refuse them this right or to harrass them....breastfeeding mothers and babies need the same equality."

Why don't they already have the right if everyone has the right?

I'm sorry I just can't get my head round it. What I like about this country is that we have the right to do stuff unless there's a law telling us we can't. That's my simple understanding. Tryign to put rights into law makes it more complicated - this law is a prime exmaple - it wants to place conditions on when/how/until what age, etc.

[oranges]

I thought this legislation was already coming in? here

[charliegal]

LOL Kiskidee, I just checked out the hooter hider...she said she wanted to breastfeed 'but was afraid to do it in pubic'. I'm not surprised!
The 'discrete' thing really bugs me too. There have defintely been times when I have been far from discrete, nipple waving around while trying to get ds latched on etc. We are not exposing our breasts for the fun of it. Look away!

[charliegal]

they're actually called hooter hiders

[SweetyDarling]

SueW,
We do have the right to breastfeed in public and no change will be made to that.
However, currently restaurants, museums etc have the right to object and make your life akward - and sometimes they exercise that right. The new legislation would make that illegal.
I see no probalem with legislating to make harrasment illegal!?

[charliegal]

I agree sweetydarling. I think there is a lot of confusion about this right, maybe because of how it is reported. A mum told me yesterday that it is illegal to bf in public in this country

[Bouncingturtle]

There was a big discussion on the radio yesterday, I think it was on radio 5 live, can't remember. Was amazed at some of the ignorant comments made by some of the callers, but the pro-public breastfeeds pretty much shot them down in flames

[SweetyDarling]

Other than not understanding the legislation, what other arguments came up against it?

[Bouncingturtle]

Charlie - that's how I heard it reported on the radio yesterday, and I thought no that's wrong it's NOT illegal to breastfeed in public.
Any of sent my email.

Here it is - hope this is okay!

I would like to express my views specifically on the part of this new legislation on new mothers. It is about time that it was enshrined in law the illegality of harassing breastfeeding mothers, though I feel that it doesn?t go quite far enough. The WHO guidelines advise that a child should be fed on breast milk until the age of 2 to give it best possible start.
Breastfeeding is a completely natural process and should not be stigmatised in any way. I?m certain that most women who breastfeed do not set out to flash their breasts at random strangers and most of the time it is possible to breastfeed in a discreet and comfortable way. However sometimes there are problems with the baby not latching on correctly but this would cause far more upset to the mother than it possibly could to any random passerby who would choose to stare at said mother.
I?m far more offended by half naked posing women plastered inside newspapers than I ever would be by a woman trying to nourish her child. Yet strangely enough I?ve never campaigned to get them banned ? I simply choose not to buy them. So if someone is offended by breastfeeding, then they can choose to look away.
What do you think?

[bookwormmum]

I saw lots of babies being bf on a recent trip abroad and the only person who felt uncomfortable about it was my dp - he doesn't like it. We have great discussions about it . What can you expect from a ff baby brought up in a male-dominated household ?