Labour ‘must fix its trans stance to win the next election’ - party needs to clarify its policies to be closer to the public’s views on the debate

[IwantToRetire]

Labour is trying to position itself as the party of the centre-ground of British politics. It has identified middle-aged, suburban women as a target demographic to win over ahead of the general election.

Labour strategists have studied polling that shows how a gender gap in voting has emerged since 2010, whereby women are on average more likely to vote Labour.

But the polling notes that Labour’s advantage is “specifically among women under 50”, while the Tories lead in women over 50.

It comes as a network of Labour activists and staffers prepares to relaunch itself next month as a think tank that will produce monthly reports on how the party can appeal to its target voters.

The organisation, called Labour Together, aims to come up with a raft of policy recommendations that reposition the party as “socially to the Right and economically to the Left”.

www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2023/03/18/labour-must-fix-trans-stance-win-next-election/

We don’t need to wait for the manifesto, @BorisisaLune . Labour’s front bench and other MPs are already on record.

It’s really odd, the way we keep being scolded, for believing what they tell us. Does this apply to all Labour’s stated positions, or just the ones you’re finding inconvenient at the moment?

Shouldn’t it be Sadiq Khan taking responsibility for Met?

Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime for the Metropolitan Police Service

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, is responsible for setting policing and crime priorities for London and will hold the Met Police Commissioner to account and work with partners to ensure that crimes goes down and criminal justice outcomes are improved

Oh please. I'm more prepared to listen to Labour than some (more fool me) and even I know they have stated they will bring in self ID - and said so in their last manifesto. All Starmer has said lately to qualify this intention is that he won't make it a priority.
If this is nothing but a Tory smear then Labour could fix it in an heartbeat.

If you think we're all being duped by the Tories then maybe explain how women's rights can be protected once the legal definition of women becomes anyone who says they're one?

As it happens, waiting to see what the manifesto says is exactly what I intend to do. But I shall scrutinise every word because the only reason I'm prepared to wait and listen is not because I trust them but because I believe Starmer genuinely wants to win (unlike some activists who prefer opposition - I'm an ex member so I know this) and because I think it might just be dawning on him what a stupid, electorally suicidal idea this is.

@Clymene Exactly this.

Working class women want safe spaces and realise that gender woo changing rooms = sexual assault and rape.

It’s really odd, the way we keep being scolded, for believing what they tell us. Does this apply to all Labour’s stated positions, or just the ones you’re finding inconvenient at the moment?

Exactly. This Twitter thread was linked on page 1, but in fact I also have it bookmarked because my MP is amongst these. Are we supposed to not believe them when they say these things but not those other things? Or did "The Tories make them say it"?

twitter.com/ripx4nutmeg/status/1442783035389325313

I wonder what they mean by 'suburban' women. Is it being used as a well-defined , evidenced demographic? Or is it a kind of focus-group-organiser short-hand for a particular stereotype that the Labour Party finds distasteful?

Do many of you see yourself as living in a 'suburb'? Do you think that your address correlates with your views on the reality and significance of sex?

In 1997 it was 'Worcester women'. If they got Worcester women to vote for them then they won the election.

(Worcester has always had an MP from governing party I believe)

Of course we do, because the GE is in 18months time (ish) we know policies and prioritises will change over that time period.

I 'm not scolding anyone, believe what you want but the point here is the present Govt is being let off the hook for 13 years of destroying womens rights but instead of holding them to account, we are holding a (non existent) Labour Government to account instead for things they have zero control over.

If Labour don't back women rights, then they wont get my vote either but i 'll adopt a wait and see atm.

the GE is in 18months time (ish) we know policies and prioritises will change over that time period

Will Rebecca Long-Bailey stop believing this?

Will Lisa Nandy stop believing this in the next 18 months?

Or David Tammy?

Or Alex Sobel?

She is an idiot, thankfully, Long Bailey isn't even in the Shadow Cabinet, shall i quote T. May on trans rights or Jamie Wallace?

And under the tories, 50% of women who need a DV refuge are turned away.

what do you say to these women?

oh & who introduced a tax on panic rooms installed for victims of violence? Yes they cancelled it but the Tories thought it a good idea at the time, says it all on their thinking.

Thanks for posting those Lucy

They can forget it. No chance from me.

@MissLucyEyelesbarrow All of the MPs you quote aren't responsible for the lack of single sex spaces in prisons, hospitals etc right now.

who is responsible for this current state of affairs?

Like i said, if this is Labours official stance in their next manifesto then my view of Labour will change.

the point here is the present Govt is being let off the hook for 13 years of destroying womens rights but instead of holding them to account, we are holding a (non existent) Labour Government to account instead for things they have zero control over

I think you'll find that many of us agree with you on the first part - the present Government is being let off the hook. But that is entirely Labour's doing. They have spent the last decade ignoring women, allowing them to be shouted down, making teenage boys Women's Officers, expelling feminists from the party, refusing to meet women with concerns, voting to allow rapists to be housed in women's prisons in Scotland, and allowing GC female MPs to be publicly abused by their colleagues. And now you want us to believe that they might change their minds before the next GE?

I have never voted Tory. I work in the NHS - I confront the damage that their policies are doing every day. I am furious with Labour that they have left me politically homeless, and forced to tolerate a party that I despise, because it's my only hope of holding on to my fundamental human rights.

TBF Marsha, you are a dyed in the Wool Tory, you were never open minded about voting Labour, so no surprise, you back the cons on all their policies across many threads, thats fair enough.

I voted for Boris and feel conned.

All of the MPs you quote aren't responsible for the lack of single sex spaces in prisons, hospitals etc right now. who is responsible for this current state of affairs?

Ooh, let's think, when was the GRA passed?

TBF you don’t know me at all so you don’t get to say.

I have voted Labour but don’t like this iteration, I don’t need your approval though.

Same old response though from someone like you so no surprise.

Labour supporters are so bad at hearing criticism the old lines are all they’ve got.

I see polls are slipping and they won’t be able to say no one said what the issues were.

Whilst much of the current shit show isn't on Labour, voting for them is a green light to worse on this specific issue.

Just look at the Met after 13 years, pissing on recruits inc women, rape victim told to work with their abuser, homophobic, racist, destruction of evidence to be used in rape cases or rape may as well be legalised according to the latest report.

The London Mayor has responsibility for the Met, that'll be Sadiq Khan, Labour and in post for the last 7 years.

I'd also like to add to MissLucy's list adding men to all women shortlists and putting men through the Jo Cox Women in Leadership programme.

How can anyone say that Labour will put women first when they've made it clear time and again that they absolutely incapable of prioritising women?

It’ll be interesting to see if Labour supporters pick up on this and put accountability to right person

I don't think that the Labour party is going to be effecting much in the way of dramatic change to any of the things that you suggest people are concerned about. They'll be tinkering around the edges, making symbolic tweaks at best.
The Left of the Labour party detests Kier Starmer as they think he has abandoned all Labour values in pursuit of being elected, and some of the people he has recently put on the front bench are considered dreaded 'Blairites'.

Revolutionary change is not going to happen any time soon.

But Gender Self Id is very radical, and once implemented it will be difficult to un-do; and it will further cement gender ideology and queer theory in all of it manifestations.

For those of us used to voting Labour as an instinctive habit it is this which has broken that bond; and in breaking that allegiance it permits one to view the situation with a less tribal mind-set. I'll be spoiling my ballot, as I did last time, because there is not a hope in hell I'll be voting for Kim Johnson, my local Labour MP. Perhaps if she was vocal about women's rights and single sex meaning single sex I'd certainly be nore tempted - but she's the opposite. If I had a decent conservative MP who I liked, I'd be tempted to vote for them; but the Conservatives have never been elected where I live for many, many decades. I might take a look at who they stand and then make my mind up.

Whether you approve of, or like, the Tories is neither here nor there when it come to this issue. It is only they who have made the appropriate 'noises' and taken the appropriate actions to halt the march of gender identity theory.

Personally, I think Kemi Badenoch is awesome, even if i don't agree with her on absolutely everything. And I think Sunak is a good guy who is doing a good job in difficult circumstances. There are other Tories that I like and admire and who aren't evil just because they are conservatives.

Conservatives aare more interested in protecting ssingle sex provisions because they know they are needed, and because they achieve what they are meant to. That is the nature of conservatism. You don't throw out things that work or that are functional just for the sake of ideological change.