Your comments for Penny Mordaunt

Could Penny Mordant please confirm the details of this announcement?
<a class="break-all" href="http://go.mumsnet.com/?xs=1&id=470X1554755&url=twitter.com/MariaMillerUK/status/1019102131394146304" target="_blank">http://go.mumsnet.com/?xs=1&id=470X1554755&url=twitter.com/MariaMillerUK/status/1019102131394146304 In stating that this will be 50:50 gender balanced is this in anyway similar to the apparently progressive Scottish act which also redefined both women and female?

Excellent point. Yes I would like that answered too.

Will the Women's & Equalities department assume any responsibility for vulnerable female prisoners assaulted by those who identify as transwomen?

There is a gross failure in the duty of care required.
Many female prisoners are vulnerable adults.

Reported in The Sun yesterday:
"A TRANSGENDER prisoner has been accused of sexually assaulting four female inmates after being sent to a women’s prison.

The first of the alleged attacks took place within days of her arriving at New Hall jail, Wakefield, West Yorkshire.

The inmate was sent there despite not having had gender reassignment surgery.

It is claimed she was visibly aroused when she allegedly assaulted the first inmate.

She was originally sent on remand to New Hall women’s prison after a judge heard how she had been living as a female for more than two years."

Danvers' Twitter comment
"Submission made during the process which led to The Miller Report. These professionals who work with offenders were ignored by the Women’s and Equalities committee"

Since the Miller report Francis Crook & Prison Governers have made explicit their concerns.

"Andrea Albutt, president of the Prison Governors Association, who has managed men’s and women’s jails, said: ‘I have seen women feeling very threatened by transgender prisoners’ presence.

‘Women prisoners are very vulnerable. A lot have abusive men in their lives, who are part of the reason they have ended up in prison.

'To put all men who declare they are women into women’s prisons would be very damaging."

"Prison reformer Frances Crook said that she was worried that ‘some men with a history of extreme violence and sexual violence against women have found a new way of exercising aggression towards women’.

Ms Crook, executive director of the Howard League for Penal Reform, added: ‘These men are not transitioning because they like women and want to be a woman, but in order to exert a new kind of control and dominance over women, a sort of infiltration."

Issues have been identified earlier this year with regards male-born prisoners in female estate Scotland:
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3242178-Transgender-killers-split-up-by-prison-chiefs

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3242264-Transgender-murders-in-Scottish-womens-prison

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3237471-Transgender-prisoners-in-Scotland-progress-report

Current threads:
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3309758-This-never-happens-male-offenders-in-female-prisons

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/3309831-To-feel-sickened-that-this-man-is-being-referred-to-in-this-way-WARNING-UPSETTING-CONTENT

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3309903-Sexual-assaults-on-Vulnerable-Women-Prisoners

Simple question: in this very emotional debate, has Penny Mordaunt given enough consideration to medical and scientific research about transsexualism and autogynephilia?
There are peer-reviewed publications, written with empathy but also scientific rigour, that suggest that there really are two types of male-to-female transgender people. The transactivist Kay Brown has a very useful website, citing actual studies by sexologists and intelligently explaining this research to the non-scientist. The (simplified) message is: these are two distinct medical scenarios, one is about identity and the other about sexuality. And the crux is that many natal women would have no problem with encountering a male-to-female transsexual in a changing room but might not feel the same way about an autogynephiliac. If de-medicalisation means ignoring medical research on this issue, we will not arrive at a policy that strikes a balance between different groups in society and their legitimate concerns.

The ability to self-identify means that boundaries, which have already been pushed and pushed despite provision in the Equality Act specifically to prevent such intrusion into crucial women's services, will be totally broken down by males being allowed to self identify.

If anyone can self identify as the sex of their choice, then the protected characteristic of sex in the Equality Act is effectively removed, and with it all sex-based protection for women and girls.

Could Penny Mordant please confirm the details of this announcement?
twitter.com/MariaMillerUK/status/1019102131394146304

In stating that this will be 50:50 gender balanced is this in anyway similar to the apparently progressive Scottish act which also redefined both women and female?

Given Maria Miller MP's position with regards self-id, what does this announcement mean?

see Fairplay for Women's discussion:

'Like A Thief In The Night: The Scottish Bill That Stole The Word Woman'

(extract)
"Last year while we were all looking the other way and distracted by the UK government’s proposals to reform the Gender Recognition Act the word woman was stolen from us. It was sneakily done by the Scottish parliament and hidden behind a smoke screen. That smoke screen was The Gender Representation on Public Boards Bill.

The Bill introduced the ‘gender representation objective’ – a target that women should make up 50% of non-executive board membership.

The purpose of this bill was admirable. It was to help women overcome the institutional sexism we suffer due to our sex. Positive action to redress the imbalances that have arisen from centuries of historical disadvantage. It was to acknowledge the reality that institutionalised inequality and sexist attitudes stop most women from reaching their full potential in public life. Financial barriers, income inequality, the gender pay gap, sexist attitudes, gender stereotyping, women’s disproportionate share of caring responsibilities, the undervaluing of women’s paid work, and media portrayals of women, to name but a few influences, all play a role in the sexism that prevents a fair number of women being involved in public life.

But in a cruel twist of irony it was also to be the perfect trojan horse to steal the very meaning of the words woman and female from us." (continues)

fairplayforwomen.com/scottish_stole_woman/

Think I was just a pompous asshat. Sorry.

she needs to consider that it is also humane and sympathetic to consider that the needs of women and girls are as they always have been

Exactly

Penny needs to understand that while she may be listening to a narrative suggesting humanity and sympathy are essential to the establishing of rights for trans gender people .... she needs to consider that it is also humane and sympathetic to consider that the needs of women and girls are as they always have been. To be free of male violence.

Females need space to recover from any male violence they have endured without Male bodies in that space.

The ability to self-identify means that boundaries, which have already been pushed and pushed despite provision in the Equality Act specifically to prevent such intrusion into crucial women's services, will be totally broken down by males being allowed to self identify.

That should be rewritten really. People will just say why would straight women be in a LGBT survey?

*Reform of the GRA affects all women and girls. Yet heterosexual women's responses were deliberately screened out in a recent survey that included the issue - the national LBGT survey. Despite this Penny Mordaunt is basing the new GRA consultation on responses from that survey. The government that literally screened out concerned women's responses is now saying that there were only a 'small number' of responses from concerned women.

Will Penny Mordant ensure that Victoria Atkins MP (Minster for Women's Affairs) meet with Dr Nicola Williams and other representatives from Fairplay for Women to investigate the serious issues they have identified and recognise women's concerns?

OP LadyLauraOver wrote:

" twitter.com/fairplaywomen/status/1017708752395481088

Fair Play for Women has exposed a scandal, an act of sabotage against women. Please read it for the details.

Straight women's voices have been screened out on the National LBGT survey. Penny Mordaunt is basing the consultation on the GRA on deliberate false information.

If you are not totally shocked then you should be. Ministers and others should resign over this. Dishonesty has no place in Law making."

thread:
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3305473-Government-erasing-womens-voices-on-the-GRA-consultation

I would like to ask her to define woman and explain how are trans women women.

I would like to ask her if she thinks it's fair that a young girl who finds herself in a changing room with a male with a fully functioning penis could herself be accused of a hate crime for challenging him.

I would like to ask her why, if "trans women are women" and "trans men are men" why hasn't the law on primogeniture been changed and why are there no plans to change it? Why are trans women still inheriting first? Why aren't trans men allowed to inherit first?

I would like to ask her why it's 'transphobic' to state the truth - a woman is an adult human female.

I would like to ask her why aren't men being called 'transphobic' or bigoted for talking about their penises? Why aren't men's spaces being invaded? Why isn't men's language being changed?

Linda Bellos, "I'm a bit of an expert in equality law"

-Penny Mordant, is there anything that Linda Bellos says that is incorrect with regards the law?

Are you aware of the circumstances that led to Linda Bellos being questioned by the police?

If not, will you be looking into this?
(thread)
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3237264-Linda-Bellos-arrested-Title-edited-by-MNHQ-to-make-clear-that-she-was-in-fact-interviewed-under-caution

Quite Penny. Do you agree that it is no longer acceptable for women to be homosexual? Because the protection of transwomen's identities and feelings matters enough to withdraw lesbian women's right to speak the truth or make their own sexual choices?

Do you extend this to all women or is it just the gay ones you feel should have their right to a self defined sexuality withdrawn? How about gay men? Will you be insisting their sexual preferences are now, suddenly no longer Prideworthy but bigoted and something to be 'stamped out'?

Does Penny think that exclusive same sex attraction is transphobic and bigoted?

What can you say to yesterday's London Pride campaigners asking that they be protected from rape culture and men and have it recognised that Lesbian = Female Homosexual?

As minister for women, is Penny Mordant aware of the increased rate of domestic violence following international football games?

With England through to the next round of the World Cup, will she read this thread as a matter of urgency please and liase with organisations and charities supporting women who have been the victims of violence?

OP LordPanofthePeaks comment:
"Posters may or may not be aware of the significant rise in the experience of DV at the times of football tournaments, and most specifically the World Cup.

Anyone googling this issue will read some startling statistics, and would appreciate that as the tournament draws near this is a heighten time of risk to women. In the borough where I work the highest ever reporting time of DV was when England played Paraguay last time ( and won).

I don't wish to killjoy a fabulous event, but the darker side of it should not be ignored.

Nationally, DV incidents reported 'spike' at these times, and we can speculate why.
I do have a professional ( and personal) interest in this, and am keen to promote an awareness of this danger. I do have responsibilities in a public organisation for Domestic Violence, as well as Children and Families, and have noticed a lack of promotion of this danger which can be so easily predicted.

So I am inviting a discussion and pointers for how people, both perptrators and potential victims can do what they can to avoid this nasty experience. MN do not ahve a current DV campaign, though the strength of opinion from posters may change this."

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/978768-Domestic-Violence-and-the-World-Cup

It's probably already been asked,

What are the advantages of segregation by gender,

What are the disadvantages of segregation by sex,

What measure are you putting in place to stop women and girls being hurt from male people abusing the system?

One more although I'm sure it's already been asked:
Does the Minister for Women and Equalities understand the difference between sex and gender?

What is your opinion on the cultish use of the current antidemocratic trend for #NoDebate in mainstream media and the use of no platforming in universities?

Women have been punched and received bomb threats for simply trying to talk about their legal rights.

a. Why have you not condemned this?
b. What do you think this tells us about a consultation that affects women and children's protections is provoking violent threats when women try to discuss how to keep these?
c. How will you ensure women who are too frightened to speak because their livelihood or safety is under threat have their voices heard? Isn't the consultation just a sham if this is not addressed?

What is her definition of transwomen? What is her definition of women?

Why are single sex exemptions

1. optional
2. so rarely used

A huge amount of formerly sex segregated spaces are operated by local and national government, or th public sector (hospitals, prisons, schools, leisure facilities,). Why aren’t they using them? Why are the tories allowing mixed sex wards by stealth?

Also, how can exemptions be used if individuals can get their birth certificates changed and their files sealed?

WhereDowe

Yes.

We've had several 'old-school' transexuals agreeing that the system isn't demeaning as it stand

I would definitely be a part of that GoldenBuns.

I agree goldenbuns. These questions are very important and a valid part of the consultation. There’s not a chance that Justine is going to actually represent our interests in this. She’s barely been back to her own thread.