In quite the turnaround Scottish Labour say the support Sandie Peggie, and would not support the GRR bill "knowing what they know now"!

I think its a combination of things.

1. Scotland is a smaller country with a smaller population so more noticeable when people speak up.
2. Education and health are devolved so yes, the SNP can introduce pro trans policies that the then Conservative government may not have.
3. Up here, unions love the SNP (I was a unison rep) but in England and Wales, its obviously more pro Labour, but Labour weren't in government down south whilst the SNP were in government here - so the unions had more influence.
4. Devolution - I believe SNP are exploiting this to attempt to introduce laws that are NOT devolved (eg changes to the equality act is wesminster's responsibility) so they can then say 'big bad westMONSTER wont let us do xyz, independence now'
5. Also the barnett formula - Scottish government get an amount of money which of course is 'never enough' but maybe if they weren't pissing it away on LGBT Youth projects etc, our kids wouldn't be brainwashed and we'd have a bit more money to spend on things that actually matter.

Just a more general question but is it that trans infiltration is worse in Scotland, or that women in Scotland are bolder and braver at fighting back.

For instance if Labour had been in power in UK Parliament at they same time as SNP with Sturgeon in charge, wouldn't they have gone as far as the SNP and push through a more self ID GRA.

Then the Scottish GRR would have been aligned to the new UK GRA.

It's disturbing to realise how much is dependent on moments in time.

Massie quotes this in his piece and it’s always worth a reminder of how truly appalling this movement is, how relentlessly focused they were on getting what they wanted & took literally no prisoners

“More than a decade ago, the Scottish Trans Alliance took control of the Scottish Prison Service’s policy on where to house inmates. As the organisation’s James Morton wrote, “we strategised that by working with the Scottish Prison Service to support them to include trans women as women on a self-declaration basis […] we would be able to ensure all other public services would be able to do the same”.

Alex Massie in the Times:
https://www.thetimes.com/article/5e7d69df-9627-4a76-aa10-526ae3c23680?shareToken=03e9eddc87c3274982c319ce6efad242

https://archive.ph/dUBNr

Link to above.

And a bit more ....

'Apologies are due to every Scottish woman who has been let down by legislators so keen to avoid the wrath of gender ideology lobby groups that they pretended this was somehow about ‘balancing rights’. If MSPs had just listened to the women listed above, they would know that the only rights under attack were women’s.

Sandie Peggie’s case has created a seismic shift ver the discussion of gender issues in Scotland. Not only have Sarwar, Baillie and even SNP First Minister John Swinney felt the need to state their support for Peggie, those MSPs who screamed loudest in favour of gender reform in Scotland have been suspiciously silent over the past fortnight. Perhaps they have seen the same polling that tells Sarwar, Swinnie and other leaders that this particular jig is up.'

https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/women-wont-easily-forgive-scottish-labours-gender-turnaround/

'there is absolutely no reason why they should not have known, in 2022, precisely what they claim to have realised only recently. Women like Sandie Peggie being confronted by men in female-only spaces and services is precisely what lobby groups for self-ID have been arguing for. In changing rooms, prisons, toilets, arts awards, maternity groups, breastfeeding groups (for heaven’s sake) where gender ideology meets our common language, ‘female-only’ can include males through said male’s desire and assertion, the latter of which must override reality and, it can reasonably be argued, common sense. To recover any credibility on this issue, Scottish Labour must admit that it simply did not listen to the siren warnings of many women, including their party’s former leader Johann Lamont, over the obvious collision between women’s rights and the demands of gender identity activists.'

Just me or was he being a bit Mr Teflon - the shit won't stick with me?

The full clip

https://x.com/TheRustler83/status/1892242954502205477

Welcome back to common sense talking Scottish Labour. Can you holler down to England and Wales? Kier Starmer - are you listening?

Nah he'll just blame it on nhs fife whilst continuing to ignore/deny that the new NHS Scotland guidance that is simultaneously out for consultation and (according to NHS Fife foi response) is already undergoing a soft launch right now 🤔 is illegal

Labour's stance makes me think of the suffragette slogan 'deeds, not words'

Its all talk at the moment basically. Lets see what the conference brings!

And swinney doubles down on his support of the GRR bill

https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/politics/john-swinney-happy-supported-gender-34709065?utm_source=linkCopy&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=sharebar

And refusing to order NHS Scotland and other public bodies to obay the law

https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/politics/john-swinney-wont-anything-ensure-34709539?utm_source=linkCopy&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=sharebar

https://www.thecourier.co.uk/fp/politics/scottish-politics/4058962/keir-starmer-gender/

And a reminder of the two Labour MSPs who resigned rather than support the GRR Bill.

'Mid Scotland and Fife MSP Claire Baker and her party colleague Carol Mochan both quit their frontbench roles in order to vote against the gender recognition bill.'

https://x.com/lnmackenzie1/status/1892182521623826943

From Lisa MacKenzie of MBM:

'You are leader of a political party at Holyrood. A former leader, a former deputy presiding officer and former chair of the public audit committee (all loyal members of your party) warn you about the glaring inadequacies of a piece of legislation before the Scottish Parliament.'

'Do you listen to them and take seriously the concerns they are bringing to you door?'

'Apparently not.'

[pics of Johann Lamont, Jenny Marra, and Elaine Smith]

But speaking to journalists after his event, Mr Gray refused to say whether he backed Ms Peggie.
He instead called for public bodies to respect ministerial guidance on protecting both single-sex spaces and trans rights.

he doesn't know what's going on. Clueless.

Given the story linked to by @ArabellaScott on another thread, it looks like Labour have found a really big stick to beat the SNP with.
https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/24947792.gray-full-confidence-nhs-fife-amid-sandie-peggie-row/

I haven't followed this but saw a headline on my phone on regret

Good. Also pathetic we had to fight for it for so long.

But is there any policy change in the offing yet?

I'm chortling mirthlessly at the idea that Scottish Labour have finally grasped that their previous position might be a vote loser, what with the 2026 Holyrood elections just round the corner.

Yes, I'm sure that what voters in Scotland really want is a bunch of people who have just admitted that they didn't understand the implications of the legislation they actually voted on, and have changed their position now because, more than two years later, they have finally grasped the consequences of something they were too fucking lazy or stupid to understand at the time.

It's gobbledygook.

Gender neutral is just that. Mixed sex.

You're far more likely to be outed in the women's. Stand out like a bloody sore thumb

Of course, now I think it's entirely intended.

Intended by transactivists and not noticed by sexist politicians

Yep.

Why would they be worried about "outing" themselves if they really believed they were women?

It really is disgusting that his private life was to be protected by sacrificing the privacy of all women.

Talk about unintended consequences of a law.

Of course, now I think it's entirely intended.

Intended by transactivists and not noticed by sexist politicians

sorry, that was in response to Merrymouse