Tweet here
We will be writing to each of the signatories of this letter later today to express our disappointment. One-sided letters that ignore the harrassment and abuse of trans people only sow division, they do not improve the climate of debate.
This raises an interesting question of exactly how LGBT Labour is planning to contact the signatories - the list includes women who have resigned from the Labour Party (#LabourLosingWomen). Therefore how do they plan to obtain people's addresses or email addresses? Does the Labour Party plan to give LGBT Labour access to membership details and contact information? To do so would be a breach of the GDPR.
If you were a signatory to the letter then you may wish to write to your MP to highlight your concerns. Especially as the threatening tone of the tweet illustrates quite neatly the point that the letter was trying to make!
Below is a template of a letter sent by one person to their Labour MP, which she has kindly given permission for me to share (her name and MP's name have been redacted for privacy reasons).
Dear MP name,
I am writing to you as my Labour MP because I am extremely concerned about this tweet from LGBT Labour which has caused me significant stress:
As a signatory of this letter I am extremely concerned about this tweet for the following reasons:
- LGBT Labour seems to be using strong arm tactics/intimidatory behaviour to shut down political debate particularly around violence against women and the discussion of women’s rights.
- Will LGBT Labour have access to obtain my contact details from the Labour Party? This seems to be in clear breach of the Labour Party’s duty to protect my personal data and in contravention of the recent GDPR Act.
- Where in the Labour Party’s privacy statement does it say that affiliated organisations can use personal data to send out warning and threatening letters to individual members. Under what provision of the GDPR Act and Labour Party rules is it permissible to pass on personal information? What is the sharing agreement between the Labour Party and LGBT Labour and please could you provide a copy of this? In addition, how does this fit with the Labour Party’s privacy statement?
If the Party is unable to answer these questions or seen to be in breach of GDPR I will have to consider making a complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office.
I would be really grateful therefore if you could assure me that:
- Any of my personal data the LP may still hold will not be disclosed to LGBT Labour, especially since I am no longer a Labour Party member.
- That LGBT Labour will be made aware of their legal commitments on data governance and that of the LP’s policies on freedom of speech.
- All violence against and harassment of women will be condemned by the LP no matter who the perpetrators.
- That LP female members will not be prevented from exercising their legal right to participate in political debate in the public arena without receiving warning letters which could be constituted as an attempt to silence them via bullying and harassment.
I look forward to hearing from you as a matter of urgency.