As Wines says: fundamental issues here about:
a) how civil servants and whole organisations built on the premise of being impartial and representing the whole population, went against their own policies and practice, and were sucked into being a mouthpiece for a political lobby group with very partisan interests. See the TRA Lobby's own comments about the quiet cups of tea with people in back rooms achieving so much.
Why were no whistles blown? Why did no one in those back room cosy meetings apparently pause to think, never mind point out the conflict of interest with their policies and public duty of impartiality?
#scandal number 1. A public inquiry needed, and heads should roll over this alone.
b) Those public servants, public departments and whole organisations (with legal teams) either unknowingly or quite intentionally reinterpreted, reframed and downright misquoted the law, set by parliament, to fit the partisan interests of the political lobby group.
This reframing created guidance that actively discriminated and went against the interests of groups of people protected under actual law.
Questions arise again: why did public bodies trained in equality, safeguarding, the culture of impartiality and public duty, not question this, whistle blow, and which is it: did they miss the reframing of the law? Which is one massive problem. Or did they actively collude with a political lobby group to blur and distort the law in the lobby's group's interest?
The TRA lobby's own comments have mentioned intentional plans to change practice to what they wanted so that the law would 'catch up' when the way they wanted things to be was pretty much made normal. And democracy and public opinion would have the least chance of getting in the way.
#Massive Scandal no 2. Public inquiry needed and lots of heads should roll, since if it is acceptable that whatever law is created, what actually happens in the country is controlled by whatever political lobby group is in bed with public servants/organisation - MPs, Parliament, HoC, House of Lords, all a very expensive waste of time and pointless to continue the existence of, and there's the end of electorate representation and democracy.
Anonymous women on this forum knew all this stuff years ago - further questions arise about why no one else was paying attention when they were being paid to do so?
Massive. Absolutely massive mess.
Spero this is - well, it's bloody tragic it's had to be done, but it's a relief to see it being dragged into the open where elected representatives will have no option but to face it. And at this point I owe you so many drinks you will need to bring a wheelbarrow I can take you home in.