Sex Matters are asking you to email your MP this weekend

I’ve had a response from my Labour MP

“Thank you for your recent regarding the Supreme Court judgement on the meaning of sex in the Equality Act.

I am happy to raise this with the Government on your behalf and I have written to the Equalities Minister today.

The typical time for a Ministerial response is 20 working days, and if I do not receive a timely reply I will chase this up until you have an answer.

As soon as I receive a response I will write to you again. I appreciate you taking the time to bring this to my attention and thank you for engaging in the political process.”

It seems unusual compared with the c&p responses a lot of other Labour MPs have sent their constituents?

Haven’t read the whole thread, but if you want the letter signed by Labour MOs and nobody has pasted it, we analysed it and linked to it from here: https://sex-matters.org/posts/updates/what-is-the-real-cost-to-business-of-ignoring-equality-law/

I wish I'd had that response from my Labour MP because it would at least suggest that she was toeng the party line. Instead I got some nonsense about some "sensitive" single sex spaces on a case by case basis and saying that the EHRC needs to be more "nuanced" (I.e. include men).

I don't think we can really complain if MPs use model emails from the govt comms team when we have sent them model emails from a pressure group

I did add some personal detail but it was still a model email

and no response so far!

I think that this email campaign by Sex Matters may have been over taken by events, as it looks like the Government have found another reason not to immediately implement https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/5436144-ehrc-guidance-might-be-delayed-for-over-a-year?page=12&reply=148491579

Yes, several of those paragraphs are the same as my MP's response, mainly the ones at the beginning and end. In the middle he adapted it a little. So yes, unless we have the same MP, this is likely from central comms. My response did arrive on Monday 3 Nov, only two days after I sent my email, and I was pleased with that. Overall, I'm not annoyed or surprised. It's a rational way to deal with bulk correspondence.

Not saying that in public, sorry! I have forwarded it to [email protected] though, so they will have it as part of the picture.

Who's your MP, @fanOfBen?

I'm going to reply to mine to 'thank' him for the comms team's words and say it's a shame he didn't send me his own thoughts!

I got this from my Labour MP, who I don't think has been named on this thread. I haven't compared sentence by sentence but I think it's the same as the others quoted, i.e. comes from central comms team:

Thank you for contacting me about the Supreme Court ruling on the appeal brought by For Women Scotland.

In April, the Court ruled that sex in the Equality Act means biological sex, meaning a person will be considered as their biological sex for the purposes of the Act, whether they have a Gender Recognition Certificate or not.

Ministers have welcomed the judgment for bringing clarity for women and service providers. They have emphasised that single-sex spaces must be protected (as the Act states), and that clear guidance must be available across a range of settings, from healthcare and prisons to sport and single-sex support groups. It also highlighted that trans people retain clear protections in law and should be able to live their lives free of harassment and discrimination.

I appreciate this is an issue with strongly held views on both sides of what has become an extremely polarised debate. I fully support the Government and the Supreme Court in their declaration that this case is not about the triumph of one group at the expense of another, about winners or losers, or ‘us or them’. Now more than ever, it is essential that people in positions of authority, such as politicians, speak out about the importance of treating everybody with respect, even when our beliefs differ.

As you will know, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has submitted a revised code of practice to the Government, following public consultation. The code is to support service providers, public bodies and associations to understand their duties under the Equality Act and put them into practice, taking the judgment into account.

Ministers are now considering the EHRC’s updated draft, to ensure it provides the clarity service providers need in line with the ruling, and that people will have appropriate access to crucial services. Something the PM emphasised in Parliament this week.

More widely, I will continue to back the Government in its work to protect and support women. I support its mission to halve violence against women and girls in a decade, and to ensure women’s equality and tackling discrimination is at the heart of its work.

Thank you once again for contacting me about this issue.

It's pretty much only Rebecca Paul and Rosie Duffield who are any use at all on that committee, isn't it?

Watching PMQs yesterday I was pleased to see Rebecca Paul raising the issue of 5 biological males still being in a women’s prison (in Banstead) despite the SC ruling having been in place for months. Starmer replied something to the effect that all institutions must implement the ruling without delay. I looked up Rebecca Paul and she’s the Tory MP for Crispin Blunt’s old constituency and is on the Women and Equalities Committee.

Chat GPT did a good analysis of her email, pointing out all the places where it is inconsistent with the SC judgement,.

I've sent a reply, but I expect she won't respond anymore.

It's an awful response. It seems as if she is being wilfully ignorant of the judgement because it doesn't say what she would like it to. I've written a response but I'm going to get ChatGPT to help me make it sound a bit more polite 😄

I'm going to reply tomorrow. Can anyone point me to relevant sections of the judgement that I can quote?

Dreadful response from my Labour MP. I suspect she is one of the backbench Labour MPs putting pressure on Bridget Phillipson.

"Thanks again for getting in touch on this issue.

I remain fully committed to fighting against discrimination of both women and the trans community. While I respect the Supreme Court ruling, I also appreciate there are questions over the ruling being raised by legal professionals and several well-respected bodies, including the British Medical Association.

It was hoped that the recent ruling would bring clarity on issues such as access to sensitive single sex spaces. But it is clear there are many questions about implementation that need a great deal more consideration to ensure the needs of all people are respected and represented in guidance.

Clear guidance should rightly be produced by the EHRC. However, I would question if the interim guidance they have issued appropriately considers the needs of all groups. It is important that some single-sex protected spaces, such as rape crisis centres, should be protected on a case by case basis, but I do not consider the blanket interim guidance issued by the EHRC to be an appropriate means of safeguarding the rights of all citizens. In addition to the protection of some sensitive single-sex spaces, the priority for guidance on this issue needs to be inclusion for all, including trans community. I believe that when issuing future guidance, the EHRC should be far more considered and nuanced.

As you state, the proposed new guidance remains under consideration by Ministers.

Thanks again for reaching out on this matter".

She thinks the SC ruling means that some 'sensitive' single sex spaces should be protected on a case by case basis. And that the EHRC should be more nuanced in their guidance, i.e. misrepesent the the judgement.

Does she think that women who have been raped live in rape crisis centres? And if not, as they go about their lives, it is fine to gaslight them that a mixed sex spaces is single sex? Why do these women care so little about vulnerable women?

And she defers to the BMA (a bloody trade union that is currently mired in activism) as an expert source on the ruling.

I really despair. I'll send it to Sex Matters.

[email protected] I think this is where to send replies

It was 20 years ago and happened in a ladies loo, before this insanity. Long story short, my then fiancé, and 3 barman chased him up the road, one sat on him til the police arrived and the other 2 held my fiancé back. He was arrested, charged, found guilty, no jail time but put on probation and a sex offenders list..

These days I’d probably have a hate crime charge against me and my fiancé and the barmen would probably get custodial sentences if he said the magic word… trans

It’s disgraceful.

Mines is Richard Baker so none of what was written in reply to us is what our mp’s actually think or from them personally. That’s really shitty!