from today's FT - Jess Phillips

the Phillips's position that she didn't see pushy trans folk as much of a new challenge to refuges (or, at least, compared to the range of funding problems and other threats they face).

But this is the exact point we are making.

The funding problem is created by pushy gender identity supporters. So pushy that they persuaded her to support private members bill pushing through gender identity without anyone knowing which she supported because to her, if anyone makes anything a condition for funding she will agree it.

Her success in her job as a BDM was dependent on jumping through the hoops the funders made her jump though. She's been trained to agree to male demands for female services in exchange for money.

Jess Phillips makes her living as a Labour politician, and I don't think that is going to change any time soon.
Labour is intent on introducing self ID and changing The Equality Act. Women are going to have to choose to stay and support that, or leave. She may believe she can effect change from within, but if that were true it would be possible now. And the change is happening in one direction only.

I don't understand how she gets the reputation of someone who acts in women's interests. Sure she has done some work in refuges and my she milks it. If she gave a shit she would be speaking out about the risks to women if Self ID is passed. And talking about all the blackmail funding. And yes, her response to Cologne was nothing short of treachery.

She’s close chums with Deborah whatsit who does the guilty feminist podcast and the latter has come out very openly with the TW are W line and the podcast is very pro trans.
Jess has only passed any recent comment to declare that it is good to debate and demonstrate - both for GCwomen orgs but also when the TRA let off smoke bombs this week.

She is also mates with Caitlin Moran- another high profile fem who is painfully quiet on this.

CM has really irked me given she makes a very good living from being a feminist with majority of her fans and book buyers being women and yet she won’t put herself out there on this one.

niceties of whether or not anyone has a particular certificate — that's way down the list of concerns.

Why? Why have an eligibility criteria and then say the eligibility criteria is way down the list of concerns?

Ah, OK. What I mean by “way down the list of concerns” is the practical decision of who to admit where being based on immediate issues at hand like “does this person pose a risk”. People turning up demanding they have access to a refuge or must see someone in it isn't new; nor is refuge staff's work in keeping them out because they are dangerous, regardless of documentation or claims to entitlement. I do in fact have concerns that GRA changes could shift things the wrong way, but I was trying to express what I had understood of the Phillips's position that she didn't see pushy trans folk as much of a new challenge to refuges (or, at least, compared to the range of funding problems and other threats they face). Maybe I've just messed up relaying that.

I do expect that it's all the sex-segregated places that aren't already well-experienced at turning away people angry because they can't come in that will find things get grim very quickly.

What was that Eppursi ?

I've always assumed that there is a reason for this blind spot - perhaps a family member or close friend is trans, and she feels as if she would be betraying them

niceties of whether or not anyone has a particular certificate — that's way down the list of concerns.

Why? Why have an eligibility criteria and then say the eligibility criteria is way down the list of concerns?

And then why make the eligibility criteria illegal to use?

What I recall from her book and hearing Jess Phillips speak on her experience in working with women's refuges is that they are already fiercely engaged with the practicalities of keeping out people who are determined to get in but aren't wanted. Day-to-day it's much more about who is threatening what violence than niceties of whether or not anyone has a particular certificate — that's way down the list of concerns.

Even so, I am disappointed to see that motion on putting Gender Identity into the Equality act. Although not to replace Sex, but the current Gender Reassignment class.

Given that Jess self-declares as a "gobby feminist", I'm surprised she's not said more lately, whatever her position.

I am not criticising Jess here but I've seen the BDM process in action. I worked in Health and Social Care and the bodies providing the funding dictate what the BDMs have to put into the bids and contracts, they have no choice, a point made very clearly by James Morten in Scotland on another thread about the We are still here meeting. They won't get funding if they don't have a self ID policy.

Jess has worked on that side of the service, not the front line.

Thinks the refuges will still be able to turn away self identified men if they dont seem sincere or some such nonsense

If the TRA plans and self-ID go through any refuge trying that will get their arse sued off. Which is one of the reasons we're pushing back.

Maybe try listening to people's concerns before writing them off as bigots, eh, Jess?

Jess recently launched a project to review the Equality Act. Something that has had very little mention since …..

Quite a few of us from here went along to the launch meeting back in June or July. It was interesting to say the least.

A lawyer was there explaining how the Act is useless if there is no way financially people can legally enforce it ….As we know.

Business are caving into the male access demands because of the aggressive use of legal threats business don't want to defend against especially as keeping males out of female space has now become something we are all supposed to think is the main cause of suicide of middle aged men.

None of it is very joined up is it.....

I work in HR so have to become familiar with role descriptions. BDMs are fund raisers in not for profits and sales people in commercial businesses.

I read the article in the FT. I am full of admiration for Jess Phillips.

Thanks trousered I think I just assumed and JP lets people assume it was frontline.

I looked her up on Wiki. A Business Development Manager is not a front line service delivery job, it's a fund raising job.

www.womensaid.org.uk/about-us/jobs/#oasis
Here's a link to a job vacancy on Womens Aid website for a Head of Business Development.

The successful Head of Business Development will:
• Be confident in strategic analysis, budgeting, planning and evaluation
• Be an excellent communicator able to motivate and inspire and win the trust of all stakeholders
• Be an excellent relationship builder
• Be experienced in managing charity finances and generating new income
• Be confident at delivering a marketing and communications strategy

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jess_Phillips

I’m sure I’ve seen her mention her work with survivors of violence, was it not hands on at all them ?

But did she interact with survivors? She was a Business Development Manager, that involves promoting services to funding bodies to get money, producing bids and tenders which are full of policy compliance statements like "identify as a woman" and "case by case basis". This job is never going to have to do anything operational in anything like this, not at the front door looking at a case, just in the head office, cutting and pasting policy words into bids.

Maybe I have overestimated her intelligence ! I have been to a talk of hers, in conversation with Jacob Rees Mogg. She was funny and came across well, I felt hopeful that she would be GC, as she seemed sensible and pragmatic. Other than on twitter that is my only experience of her.

I am also disappointed by her, she is clever, determined, she does seem to really care about women and yet this...she’s worked with victims of domestic violence I think ? So it really surprises me that she doesn’t get the vital importance of single sex space for women and girls.
I wonder what her life experience has been ? Because amongst my friends the ones least likely to see the point of single sex space are the ones lucky enough to have never been genuinely frightened of a man /men.

Similar points with merry there.

I have to say I'm disappointed by Jess Phillips. I think it's one thing to sign our rights away if you've never come across any abusive men and would therefore think there's no risk, but she used to work for Refuge. She knows how it all works and still she does it.