Fascinating background on parliamentary questions re the original GRA bill

[kesstrel]

twitter.com/HairyLeggdHarpy/status/1049289194370002945

It shows the issues we are raising now were raised then, but dodged

Wow.
And how interesting that it was the sceptical Tebbit and Widdecombe who were probing the meaning and intentions of this.

It is well worth trawling through Hansard regarding the GRA if anyone ever has time for a rabbit hole and wants more than this Twitter thread. It is very enlightening.

I’m no fan of lord Tebbit politically but he was right here.

Bowl me neither, I always thought he was bloody awful, however he clearly understood the problems with the bill. In fact from that Twitter thread, its clear the problems where clearly laid out during debates and ignored.

its clear the problems where clearly laid out during debates and ignored.

That's what struck me, Gulags; I wonder if those proposing to change the GRA even went back to look at the original debates?

Am I reading it right - that they 'bought off' the extreme rightwingers by telling them this was a way of avoiding bringing in gay marriage?

Am I reading it right - that they 'bought off' the extreme rightwingers by telling them this was a way of avoiding bringing in gay marriage?

That was my reading of it. Homophobic arseholes.

"It was, in the Govt's eyes, FAR preferable to convert a same sex couple into a heterosexual couple via 'sex change' than it was to make same sex marriage legal"

That's what they do in some Islamic countries where sex changes are surprisingly acceptable because it's preferable to people being gay. I wonder if there's any connection there.

Amazing. Thank you for linking that

Repeal The GRA

Fair Play for Women also have a good history of the debate at the time - - which goes into more detail (and is a bit easier to read) than the twitter thread fairplayforwomen.com/transgender-rights-get-part-2-changing-legal-sex-status/

Well this is interesting. I wonder if Widdecombe would speak about this publicly now? She might be an interesting voice to raise awareness of the issues within certain segments of society.

THANK GOODNESS this is getting out there more widely on Twitter. I've not been well enough to do anything so detailed or tweet etc and its so frustrating and scary to just have to hope that someone else can when everyone else is up to their eyes already.

The GRA was terrible law (as we know) and we need to let everyone know that it has had all of the negative consequences that were feared and predicted. I hope it will give some politicians the confidence to speak up.

Baroness O'Cathain said "We must not allow our natural sympathy for those who struggle with a serious psychological problem to blind us to the problems that the Bill will create for other people. If the Government persist in pushing through the Bill, they must make radical amendments to protect the freedom of conscience of those who simply do not believe that the law can declare a man to be a woman or a woman to be a man. It is only common sense and a basic human right for individuals to be free to believe fact rather than fiction, otherwise we are entering a dark future of coerced totalitarian-style law making."

seafret

Aah you are here, I was going to nick and re-quote that quote that from Baroness O'Cathain, because it's such a powerful statement about freedom of belief. It's one of the things I struggle with the most

OMG this

breast

That quote has hit a few of us between the eyes!

The prescience of some of these comments... Astounding. 14 years ago, they were met with "this will never happen."
And now it IS happening.
And people are STILL denying there is a problem.