Wes Streeting addresses puberty blockers decision -excellent response

JKR on the Nandy interview.

J.K. Rowling
38m
The times they are a-changin’

This is very true. If I avoid a question / issue in my day job, I'm very much telling you something!

I share this concern. I'm very pleased that Wes Streeting seems to have persuaded his Cabinet colleagues that they don't want to go down in history as the government that ignored the Cass report, but I'm not convinced yet whether it's any more significant than that.

Implementing Cass was a Labour manifesto pledge, and so was GRA 'simplification'. Starmer also insisted into the election that clarifying the Equality Act wasn't necessary. So welcome as this news is, it doesn't make me any more optimistic about future battles. Indeed, if Starmer does view this whole issue as as a trading exercise then, if anything, I'm more apprehensive.

But on a positive note, some of the Twix nutjobs have hopefully done us all a favour this weekend.

Well of course the most marginalised group eveeerrrr will draw parallels between their experiences and those of people of colour.

White male privilege, eh.

My concern is that they are going to give way on something to compensate for Cass and PB…will it be women or schools guidance? Stonewall are suspiciously quiet, I can’t see that they’ve commented on PBS at all in the last few days. They did retweet an amnesty international tweet about education though - whether that’s significant I’m not sure. twitter.com/amnestyuk/status/1810931569340637425?s=46&t=g7UjjEa2S2y82o-tbjyL_g

Guido's post outlines how crazy things are getting in Fox Killer world.

Remember though it is to our advantage he is the TRAs official lawyer. As long as they stick with him our cases are going to win way easier than if they got someone better. They are throwing money away on a guy who generally loses cases badly.

https://order-order.com/2024/07/15/jolyon-declares-himself-holder-of-key-to-moral-universe-in-trans-meltdown/

DrudgeJedd · Today 11:47

Maugham is fuming that the new SoS is not replying to his deranged Twitter tantrum.

Well, Jolyon, nobody wants to get into a Twitter flame war with a demented ideologue, to whom facts and reason are strangers.

With Nandy it takes time to step back from the madness.

I hope so. The sports issue is very hard to ignore.

5 MPs....

But none are education sec. So far.

Thank fuck. So far.

It is quite gratifying to see how unhinged some of the responses to Streeting are.

Totally. Operation let them all speak.

Labour take note.

You want less heat and more light. You want debate.

The quality of the debate is bonkers. Now do you see?

With Nandy it takes time to step back from the madness. Look where Streeting started and where he is now. Lots of us were trying to be kind once.

Nandy is starting to peak. When the TRAs turn on her it will be another step.

Streeting unfollowing the Fox Killer is beautiful. That is not all though.

Dr Natacha Kennedy
I said yesterday that, if wes streeting
could not answer these questions he was not fit to be health secretary.

Now he has not only unfollowed Jo but unfollowed me (a qualified and published academic expert with peer-reviewed publications in this area) as well.

They tried to make Streeting lose his seat, failed, sent him more abuse and get upset when he reacts calmly.

Joshua Newbury, new Labour MP for Cannock Chase, just elected for first time, just published a thread on puberty blockers then deleted it. It was fairly mild saying he was concerned with ban, but wanted to follow evidence and discussing Cass Report. A TRA noticed this and is now claiming he was forced to take it down. They screencaped the thread here.
https://x.com/BadWritingTakes/status/1812628553311387656

More likely he was upset by the TRAs all sending over top threats to Streeting and thought wait lets not get involved in this as a starting MP.

They're all saying the heat / light line. Wes did before the election in an interview about Cass and pbs. I feel like it's everywhere. It doesn't mean anything! Deflection technique.

To be fair, from what I've been hearing, they're backing it up with "reasonable debate" (Nandy on radio 4 this morning about something else) which is what Stonewall (the invisible political party in power for a decade) disallowed.

I believe she has said she now regrets signing anything, again under the category of light/ heat/ agree to disagree within debate.

As much as I am really not hopeful beyond the pb ban, AT LEAST they're recognising that we must be able to debate.

I'm finding it hilarious the number of lefty blue tick twatters that are attempting long debate threads on "why this is a travesty" in an attempt to debate with the only outcome of showing themselves to be completely ignorant of the key issues that led to Cass or the pb ban.

I also hope Labour are noting the stupidity and where exactly the heat is coming from.

The guardian with its usual spin

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/article/2024/jul/15/wes-streeting-defends-puberty-blocker-ban-decision-after-labour-criticism

a series of Labour MPs = 5 MPs

There are so many times I want to shake these people and demand 'what exactly does that mean?'

It's mindless twaddle.

I thought Nandy was doing OK right up until she reverted to more "light and less heat", she's like a broken record.

Did she think signing a pledge which called WPUK and LGB Alliance transphobic hate groups and called for any Labour members holding GC views to be expelled from the party was bringing light rather than heat?

Gosh. I can't imagine why the secretary of state unfollowed you after you posted a long and utterly deranged rant attacking him, Jolyon.

Yes Nandy's still referring to young people in her own constituency. And 'more light less heat' etc.

My take - and this doesn't diminish Wes Streeting's contribution - is that they've accepted it would be utterly batshit to disregard something as weighty as the Cass Review.

If anyone wants to read the article from the National linked just upthread. Although, having waited for it to archive I'm reluctant to encourage anyone else to waste time on it

https://archive.ph/f37cA jump paywall and, perhaps, have your bingo cards ready?

Nandy has slightly changed her language around this trans* child. I can but hope that maybe this young person is desisting.

*imo should be 'transed' child.

Count down to Nandy becoming a big target for TRA abuse begins now sorry to say.

Sadly, she's probably about to find out exactly how toxic the 'debate' is from the TRA side.

Maugham is fuming that the new SoS is not replying to his deranged Twitter tantrum. I've noticed that most of JM's engagement now is mostly creepy anime dudes and other parents of trans kids. There used to be chummy exchanges with other barristers etc but looks like sensible people are avoiding him now.

She alluded to the young trans person again in that clip. Right at the end she says that young trans people are waiting too long for support, counselling and 'medical services', as she knows from her own constituency.

Blimey

Does anyone else remember how, whenever Nandy was asked about the issue of single-sex spaces, she would always answer with reference to a "trans child" in her constituency who was on a long waiting list for treatment? It never made any sense, but I wonder what she'd say now. Is she reverse ferreting because she's genuinely changed her mind, or because she is following what is now the party line?

Wow interesting. Ferrets in full reverse there. Nothing less than full endorsement of Streeting and Cass.

With Dodds also backing him we can see things shifting. Long way to go, but we are gaining.

Count down to Nandy becoming a big target for TRA abuse begins now sorry to say.

Increasing coverage in the media:

Over the top attack on Streeting in the National. Newsflash without the Scottish public telling SNP where to go this probably would not be happening. Weird to ignore Scottish opinion in a nationalist paper. Anyway it is a very weak effort.

The Labour Party are twisting the knife with puberty blocker pledge
https://www.thenational.scot/politics/24451123.labour-party-twisting-knife-puberty-blocker-pledge/

Sun - BLOCKERS BAN
Health Secretary Wes Streeting defends ban on puberty blockers after backlash from Labour MPs
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/29218022/wes-streeting-defends-ban-puberty-blockers/

NB 5 Labour MPs disagreeing out of 411 is not much of a backlash.
Nadia Whittome MP
Clive Lewis
Zarah Sultana
Apsana Begum
Stella Creasy

Spectator - Labour splits emerge over puberty blockers
archive.is/TFNXS
Article misses two of the Lab MPs who disagreed openly.

Interestingly Dawn Butler didn't put out a statement herself just shared the LgBT Labour response which is widely seen by TRAs as being too weak.

Noticeably the BBC are not covering this major story so far. Wonder why?