Adam Graham is the reductio ad absurdum of the idea that a man is a woman solely on his say-so.

[Igneococcus]

Janice Turner in the Times:

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/db651234-9e7c-11ed-8201-2ed91f44d1e8?shareToken=6d484543e602975dbd6f964af78fc46f

It's great.

"Indeed, trans activists strategically targeted prison policy. James Morton, head of the Scottish Trans Alliance, formulated the SPS’s rules. By enabling the service “to include trans women as women on a self-declaration basis within very challenging circumstances”, he wrote, “we would be able to ensure all other public services do likewise”. In other words, if horrible things happen to female prisoners, no one will find out (or even care), so we can “prove” to the NHS or schools that self-ID is risk-free.

...

Above all, prison policy should be transparent. No more behind-doors lobbying from self-interested groups. No more caging often-traumatised women with male people they can’t escape. No more erasing the 200-year-old wisdom of Elizabeth Fry."

Excellent article

Well done them, if they hadn't been so selfish we would not have had such a clear demonstration of where it ends up.

I suppose Morton being trans would make it hard to be objective and fair on others, it's all so self obsessed.

Great, if upsetting article.

It's all been known for so long, it's all been said. It's all been discussed here, shared on social media and yet no one listened. And it's great it's happening now but so so sad it's taken so long.

I shall buy the Times for real tomorrow in thanks.

Well done Janice

so consistent on this issue for so many years

Tje interesting thing is the Artie reads so well, makes so much sense. The use of correct pronouns just works well so that you don't actually notice (even though it s abig deal and she's been brave) whereas all the articles with "she" pull me up short mentally, every single time!

Indeed, trans activists strategically targeted prison policy. James Morton, head of the Scottish Trans Alliance, formulated the SPS’s rules. By enabling the service “to include trans women as women on a self-declaration basis within very challenging circumstances”, he wrote, “we would be able to ensure all other public services do likewise”. In other words, if horrible things happen to female prisoners, no one will find out (or even care), so we can “prove” to the NHS or schools that self-ID is risk-free.

To see it here laid out in black and white makes for a chilling read. It's been said on here and through campaigning groups how all along TRAs have followed a covert strategy to push through change. They've known all along how damaging their demands would be to society and in particular women and children. And it was effective as we see how our institutions such as the NHS and LAs have been captured and swept along. Hopefully now more sunlight on Dentons will be reported on to show just how devious this ideology is.

A related article looks at a Policy Exchange report on the many staff networks in policing. But it could be any (public) organisation.

It's time to start raising this more explicitly with our MPs. Politics are for politicians, not the police, not the prison service, not social care, not teachers. They have got to be and be seen to be impartial.

"Policy Exchange made a series of recommendations to tighten up the activity of networks. They included bringing every staff network under a consistent internal governance framework and limiting the amount of time police duty was committing to them.

It said that their primary objective should be to contribute to improving the effectiveness of policing on behalf of the wider public, adding: “It must be explicit that this must override all other considerations. It has become increasingly common for police officers, and staff networks in particular, to publicly wade into political debates.”"

Ethical groups are cause for concern for police forces

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/a06c44aa-9e8a-11ed-8201-2ed91f44d1e8?shareToken=d2847775a461c55a9a6f1b0c4b022a9a

Yes, it's great to see the correct pronouns used. I hope it's a Times wide change.

I can't even express properly what I think of this article. It makes me feel quite emotional. It is so right. So accurate. So filled with quiet dignified rage. So researched. So plain speaking. And so hitting all the targets when the spotlight is on the issue.

Bloody well done Janice.

Janice is the first journalist, I think, to use correctly-sexed pronouns for this man. I hope it opens the floodgates.

Thank you for share token.

Brilliant article. Thanks for posting it, @Igneococcus.
I did not know that the EA2010 exceptions did not apply to prison. Perhaps that was another reason why prisons were selected for the big push.

Thanks for using the grammatically correct pronouns, Janice Turner (and Janice Turner's editor).

Indeed, trans activists strategically targeted prison policy. James Morton, head of the Scottish Trans Alliance, formulated the SPS’s rules. By enabling the service “to include trans women as women on a self-declaration basis within very challenging circumstances”, he wrote, “we would be able to ensure all other public services do likewise”. In other words, if horrible things happen to female prisoners, no one will find out (or even care), so we can “prove” to the NHS or schools that self-ID is risk-free.

I too thought this paragraph to be the most chilling part. V pertinent- I hope all readers took that on board.

It sounds like none of the MPs / msps who've been wilfully dismissing this issue knew that either. Or pretended.

I notice the bbc app continues to report more awful details about this man, namely what he did at the college.

It's clear he is a very manipulative predator

I did not know that the EA2010 exceptions did not apply to prison.

Hospitals were next and my MSP seemed to be totally unaware of this fact.

What a powerful piece of journalism, brilliantly done. Thank you for posting and for the share token @Igneococcus

Anyone know why this was an exception?

I did not know that the EA2010 exceptions did not apply to prison.

Hopefully someone with a better memory than me will be able to clarify but IIRC the work on this policy began in 2007. The documents were available on the internet once upon a time but have now mysteriously disappeared. Murray Blackburn McKenzie also not the disappearance/denial of evidence.

murrayblackburnmackenzie.org/2022/04/06/the-sps-review-on-trans-prisoners-a-chance-to-get-policy-making-in-scottish-prisons-back-on-track/

I think James Morton's words pre-date the EA and the plan to use prisons as a test ground for self ID started just 3 years after the original GRA.

Apparently there's new IPSO guidance due the end of this month. However, the thread below seems to says it's been being promised since 2020, so don't get too excited!

twitter.com/fairplaywomen/status/1619240085739966464?s=46&t=MqWtHGzimmtaww1Xuveyqw

I haven't read this article yet but the exceptions do apply to prisons, but the was a judgement last year (was it against Keep Prisons Single Sex?) whereby the judge said that under current legislation it is LAWFUL to have mixed sex prisons. The search function here is terrible or I would try to dig it out.

This is brilliant!

Do people here really think the tide is starting to turn?

I agree that the part about the choice to use female prisoners as proving ground was very powerful. Pick a group of extremely vulnerable women where, crucially, public sympathy towards them is extremely limited and any negative effects of the policy can easily be hidden or blamed on the women themselves.

Then claim ‘if prisons can do it…’

Sinister stuff.