‘No suggestion of amending the Equality Act’

[Thelastempressofconstantinople]

I’ve just been looking at the consultation documentation. One of the things that struck me about it is the repeated ‘reassurance’ that there is no intention of amending the Equality Act exemptions.

Er, isn’t this completely disingenuous and misleading? So misleading that it suggests whoever framed the consultation had a very poor grasp of the legal issues?

At the moment the Equality Act exemptions effectively permit the exclusion of transwomen from certain female only spaces and services if certain (fairly demanding) tests are met. Unless these tests are met, transwomen (but not men) have to be admitted.

But at the moment the transwomen who benefit from this have a GRC. The effect of the change to self id is that a far wider range of transwomen (self identified) will have to be admitted to female only spaces and activities unless the tests for exclusions in the Equality Act are met.

Presumably this effect could be avoided by doing exactly what the consultation boasts won’t be done - amending the Equality Act to provide for a far wider range of circumstances in which transwomen may be excluded from female only spaces and activities.

If the sole intention behind amending the GRA really was to ease the ‘bureaucratic’ process of applying for a GRC, why wouldn’t this corresponding amendment be made to the Equality Act? After all, if the concern really was just bureaucracy, that would deal with the problem, wouldn’t it? Protect women and single sex spaces while assisting transpeople by permitting self id?

It seems that (a) whoever issued the consultation hasn’t understood how the Equality Act and the GRA fit together and (b) that what is driving this isn’t just a wish to avoid bureaucracy, expense, etc- but a wish to invade women’s spaces.

Why not deal with this by amending the Equalities Act too? What is the excuse given in the consultation for not doing this? Have I missed it?

Equally, trans people will end up with the same problem...

What's even scarier is that it will be our fathers, husbands, sons and brothers who allowed it to happen. While our sisters and daughters who collide will eventually suffer, just as we do.

Y offred. The only people who truly understand this and deplore it are the class analysts on the left.

And that's from a swing sometimes Tory voter. I am a single issue voter now.

They know what they are doing re both this and Brexit.

Sorry, that's wrong.

In both cases they have twisted and turned, different members have continually contradicted each other and then changed their views.
It is most definitely cockup rather than conspiracy.

There are divisions within both Labour and the Tories. It is incredibly naive to think that the government isn’t exercising control over the public narrative and doesn’t know what it is doing...

Even the stuff about May being incompetent is calculated and controlled in order to benefit the party IMO.

Oh offred: I think we are very similar. I see design everywhere, and specifically on this issue.

When I see an interest which fits with a political philosophy and a policy program then I conclude it is more likely than not that there is design.

I don’t believe that it is likely that incompetence is the explanation when something is coming from a government. I accept that there is a possibility that it may be but spinning things as incompetence/managed incompetence/incompetence by design is a well known tactic used by those in positions of power in order to achieve ideological aims.

Getting the public to accept objectionable things is much easier if you get them to believe that you don’t know what you are doing but your heart is in the right place. People may well forgive you and give you another chance if you also ridicule and toxify your political opponent.

Hmm. If the government do really know what they are doing, why don't they just come out with their clever answers?
It would save all the bickering and resignation threats, and gain them credit at the polls for being so clever.

You can also use sacrificial lambs to convince ‘lessons have been learned’ - May is in this position right now. She will understand her job is to cling on until it is politically expedient to chuck her under the bus. I would not be surprised at all if she has known this re Brexit right from the very beginning.

Because the ‘clever answers’ will make people angry with them. Why would they want to admit they want to keep the customs union, free movement etc? That would kill the vote, they are playing a long game and positioning the EU to take the flack for that.

Successive governments have carefully controlled the narrative re free movement for decades, freely allowing and encouraging immigration whilst avoiding spending on services we need then spinning the media and the public into ‘taking out jobs’ and then condemning them as racist... That was the context in which the vote took place. I think it took them by surprise that the vote came out as leave TBH but now they are managing it in their interests...

In this document www.equalityhumanrights.com/sites/default/files/what_equality_law_means_for_your_business.pdf on page 24 it says:

"It is not necessary for [a transsexual woman] her to have a GRC to have the protected characteristic of gender reassignment."

So does this not mean that anyone can have the protected characteristic of gender reassignment if they say so??