MNHQ here: webchat with MPs Jess Phillips and Flick Drummond

[BojanaMumsnet]

Hello,

We’re pleased to announce a webchat with Jess Phillips MP and Flick Drummond MP, co-chairs of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Women and Work, on Monday 23 January at 2pm.

Monday sees the release of the APPG’s first annual report, which explores the broad theme of ‘women returners.’ It has considered ‘a range of diverse issues which impact on the ability of women to return to the workplace, particularly after taking maternity leave or fulfilling caring responsibilities.’

Jess Phillips is the Labour MP for Birmingham Yardley. Before this, Jess spent five years working for Women’s Aid, and served on Birmingham City Council, where she was appointed Birmingham’s first ever Victims’ Champion. Since being elected to Parliament in 2015, Jess has served on the Women and Equalities Select Committee and the Backbench Business Committee. Last year she authored a guest post on Mumsnet in support of the Reclaim the Internet campaign.

Flick Drummond is the Conservative MP for Portsmouth South. Prior to her election in 2015, she worked as an insurance broker, Ofsted lay school inspector and was a member of the TA Intelligence Corps. Flick now sits on the Women and Equalities Select Committee, where her work has included contributing to the Gender Pay Gap inquiry, in which she called for more flexible working conditions to be offered at the start of employment. Flick cites her own experience of re-entering the jobs market after raising her children as important in giving her a first-hand account of the unique difficulties that women face in the workplace.

So if you'd like to talk to Jess and Flick about women and employment, returning to work, their experience of being women MPs (or just plain MPs), sounding off on Twitter or anything else that takes your fancy, do please join us on Monday. As always, please do keep in mind our webchat guidelines - one question each (follow-ups if there’s time) and please be polite!

Thanks
MNHQ

I'm not sure such a person even exists. I think they've all heard lots of heartbreaking stories from trans & non-binary people and now they're either scared to say that woman is a sex or they genuinely believe that trans rights overshadow women's rights .

Who is to stick up for women if not the Women and Equalities Committee? I don't really have a lot of sympathy with the idea that they can't speak up for women to be honest. I think they're just not very well informed.

I think we need to have a march to stand up for biological women's rights.

We are oppressed because of our sex, not because of our gender identity.

No matter how much I identify as male or non-binary, men recognise me as female. So they'll still pay me less, catcall me, threaten me with sexual violence and expect me to make the sandwiches.

I can't identify my way out of my sex.

Transactivists are a tiny minority and most people know biology is real

The problem is transactivists have a voice and influence far larger than their numbers would suggest. Also, we TERFS are a minority too - most people have never really thought about it - the furthest they get is wanting to make sure they are seen as inclusive and not transphobic. If you don't think about it very hard what the transactivists say seems terribly reasonable.

It sounds like the big march in Washington did pretty much focus on the issues of biological women in the end, in spite of the organisers falling over themselves to not be "exclusionary" to transpeople and including a self-confessed rapist as a speaker. Hooray for "genital-based feminism" as transactivists are calling it. I think there is a case for reclaiming that.

" the furthest they get is wanting to make sure they are seen as inclusive and not transphobic. If you don't think about it very hard what the transactivists say seems terribly reasonable."

Not when you tell people what transactivists are really saying.

Just show 'em Danielle Muscato. And the trans reaction to the women's march.

No-one thinks it's reasonable. And as soon as they see the madness, they start thinking about the ostensibly less mad things. And realise that it has no validity either.

Itsall, I don't think most people give the issue much thought. They try to be inclusive where possible but they don't know the kind of ideology they're dealing with-- as these extreme trans views aren't expressed outside of social media echo chambers. Hence all the "pussy power" placards at the march which so offended many transactivists narcissists--

Unfortunately public organisations and policy makers do listen to these people. And fail to think through or care about the ramifications for women and girls.

Strikeout fail

Has anyone heard from fish by any chance ?

How did you know you were allowed back? Did you get an email? I wonder if Fish knows?

I've been a MN member for over 12years and I have to say that MNHQ's handling of this was piss poor.

I hope Jess is still reading. I have enormous respect and admiration for her. Parliament needs women like Jess. But we also need women who stand up for actual women and are not afraid to do so. Trans people deserve the same respect as everyone else. Just not at women's expense and not by expecting us to collude in their beliefs.

I hope Jess is still reading** ... unlikely.

I think the pair of them would have fled like frightened rabbits escaping the slaughterhouse.

Mmmmmmm rabbit

venus

Yeah I think I got the bog standard email about adhering to guidelines or they may have to think again, but I wasn't reinstated until I had replied.

I do hope fish comes back.

What upsets me is she wasn't sure whether she should post on that webchat or not. I think she has received a certain amount of negativity due to her situation and was reluctant to stick her head above the parapet in the first place.

Ouch! Sadly i can see the trans issue taking centre stage in most future MP chats though...

There seem to be few, if any MPs willing to engage. I was wondering whether HQ could have someone on, who could remain anonymous. People could tell them their concerns, backed up with links, evidence, etc, and they could respond without fear of their input being made public.

Or, alternatively get someone like Miranda Yardley on who doesn't mind if her viewpoint is made public. And see if MSM picks up on any of it.

AssassinatedBeauty "To be fair though, MN will presumably invite speakers that they think will be popular and increase their traffic. They are a business, they need to sell advertising etc. They don't have to do anything we ask, just for our benefit. They'll only do it if it benefits them in some way. I can see why issues around transactivism and women's rights is a topic they'd wish to avoid on a cost/benefit analysis."

So because they are a business making money from advertisers who use this site because (primarily) women come and chat and read here, the business should not listen or be concerned when their users or 'customers' raise legitimate concerns about the services they offer! Whatever happened to the customer is always right!

We aren't the customer though - we are the product

Oh Twunk "We aren't the customer though - we are the product" ... feel a bit used now!

Actually I don't, I feel it is two way. We use the site. share our scintillating situations, comment and post and in return Mumsnet keeps the roof on and sets up little things for us to do. Where this one fell down was the spectacular way the questions were so very dodged.

I think Mumsnet could be clever enough to find someone who shares our concerns, especially around not transing young kids and how one defines 'woman'.

I think people were actually quite polite, maybe Mumsnet doesn't realise how much people on threads look out for each other, share concerns and fears, and advice, deep into the night.

I am going to change the definition, we are not 'users' or 'customers', we are community. And I felt yesterday we were not treated like community, we were treated like an irrelevance -well not me as I was not there, but I was with you all in spirit!

I know, I'm an old cynic aren't I?

It is a community and yes I feel a bit rejected by it at the moment. But I also know that mumsnet raised my consciousness of feminism (and other things!) and, as such, is a very powerful tool.

Maybe this is why there is a reluctance to speak up. Panic buttons, death threats and zero support from the party

Maybe Jess stuck her neck out as far as she safely could.

I think so Empress - she certainly said more than Flick did, so I'm disappointed to see her getting such a hard time here: imvho I don't think that pushing aggressively will advance the feminist cause here (rightly or wrongly) because they'll be damned if they do and damned if they don't, and frankly when your family's safety is potentially at risk, why would you stick your neck out any further? Jess in particular is doing far more than many other female MPs for women:whether that goes far enough for this branch of feminism doesn't necessarily pit her against it iyswim?