Britons’ support for trans people in single-sex spaces is among lowest - IPSOS survey

[IwantToRetire]

A majority of Britons are sympathetic to discrimination faced by trans people, according polling — but support for them to use single-sex spaces and receive medical treatment in their teens is among the lowest in the world.

The UK came third-last of 30 countries when ranked in public support “that transgender teenagers should be allowed to receive gender-affirming care, such as counselling and hormone replacement treatment, with parental consent”.

Forty-seven per cent of Britons either strongly agreed or somewhat agreed with the statement, while 35 per cent disagreed and 18 per cent were not sure.

UK was the second-lowest of 30 countries in terms of support for trans people being allowed to use the public toilets of their choice.

Thirty-six per cent of Britons agreed that “health insurance systems should cover the cost of gender transition no differently than the costs of other medical procesures” — the fourth-lowest proportion of the 30 countries.

Britons’ support for gender-affirming healthcare fell in the bottom three of the 30 countries surveyed.

Much more at https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/majority-of-britons-sympathise-with-trans-people-who-face-prejudice-7vrjzv8dx

I found the article quite hard to follow. There may be better coverage elsewhere.

Article is behind a paywall but can be read by pasting the Times article web link above in https://archive.ph

[Freezylap]

I’m not surprised. There has been much more vigorous discussion of the issues here than in many other countries. When people have their eyes opened to the real demands of the trans movement they become less supportive.

[DarkDayforMN]

“that transgender teenagers should be allowed to receive gender-affirming care, such as counselling and hormone replacement treatment, with parental consent”.

Weaselly pernicious fuckers, whoever wrote that question. Begging the question with "transgender teenagers," then lumping cross-sex hormones together with counselling. And describing cross-sex hormones as "hormone replacement treatment!"

I think the difference between this and other countries is probably down to more people being able to see through that kind of manipulative bullshit, because there has been publicity here.

[BinturongsSmellOfPopcorn]

That's an impressively twisty question.

[ArcticSkewer]

Good.

Everyone else will catch up.

I'm surprised that many people think the NHS should be funding it, while people wait years in pain for hip ops and cancer treatment delays are the longest they've ever been, and the staff are on strike due to poor pay and working conditions

[bellac11]

So we are world leaders in safeguarding then?

[MagicSpring]

The point is whether trans people should be able to use opposite sex spaces, not single sex ones.

And counselling is good, but affirmation-only counselling is not really counselling.

[SquirrelSoShiny]

@ArcticSkewer

Good.

Everyone else will catch up.

I'm surprised that many people think the NHS should be funding it, while people wait years in pain for hip ops and cancer treatment delays are the longest they've ever been, and the staff are on strike due to poor pay and working conditions

People abroad will likely blame Brits rejecting gender woo on us having the 'free' NHS, especially in America, where it has the double value of being able to say how brilliant insurance-based healthcare is.

[Grammarnut]

Had the questions been less twisty I think more people would have sceptics. When asked if men should be allowed into women's public toilets the refusal to accept this has been much higher.

[MajesticWhine]

I just commented on this in the times. I was surprised about the 47% support for teenage treatment. But it could be down to the badly formed question.

[lanadelgrey]

So the next chant will be defund the NHS? I think at that point the last vestiges of support for trans procedures will vanish. The great inter generational solidarity that makes the NHS work as a concept is or was buoyed up by notion of triaging need along lines the public largely agreed with ie cancer op ahead of varicose vein surgery.

[Pudmyboy]

@bellac11

So we are world leaders in safeguarding then?

This! As one comment on the Times said, it's not a list I want to be at the top of!

[LodiDodi]

Probably because we have good academia here where difficult questions and discussions can be asked and held. Also as PP said, the use of the term 'hormone replacement therapy' is quite telling here. I mean, it may well be the actual medical term for what they do, but more people in this country (than perhaps others where these things aren't discussed as freely) are aware that there are many dangers to messing with a person's natural hormones, especially in adolescence. Thousands of teenagers are now infertile and squally dysfunctional before they've even reached adulthood. A great chunkmkf them ate female and/or autistic. How does that make you feel? It actually makes me a bit queasy, you know, in the way I expect the use of lobotomies did, before public perception turned and they became outlawed and a medical scandal.

[Theladyinluna]

@DarkDayforMN

“that transgender teenagers should be allowed to receive gender-affirming care, such as counselling and hormone replacement treatment, with parental consent”.

Weaselly pernicious fuckers, whoever wrote that question. Begging the question with "transgender teenagers," then lumping cross-sex hormones together with counselling. And describing cross-sex hormones as "hormone replacement treatment!"

I think the difference between this and other countries is probably down to more people being able to see through that kind of manipulative bullshit, because there has been publicity here.

Absolutely. That is an appallingly biased question.

[BinturongsSmellOfPopcorn]

it may well be the actual medical term for what they do

It isn't.

[Theladyinluna]

@MajesticWhine

I just commented on this in the times. I was surprised about the 47% support for teenage treatment. But it could be down to the badly formed question.

It’s a bad question as it asks about two different ‘interventions’ counselling, and medical intervention. Someone who supports counselling but not medical intervention has difficulty answering. So someone who only supports counselling, but opposes or is unsure of, medical intervention may still answer in the affirmative.

We can see the bias, calling counselling ‘gender affirming, for example, or calling teenagers with gender incongruence ‘ transgender’, but someone not so intimate with the debate may not spot this.

[zibzibara]

Just for once I'd like to see a survey where the questions actually describe what the contentious issues are, for example using the Staniland question and similar.

[Igmum]

Absolutely agree. Good surveys (there have been a few, which specify, for example, that TW are men) get very different answers

[ThatsNotGoodMelon]

Excellent. They don't call us TERF island for nothing 💪

I'd be severely fucked off if Trans healthcare was prioritised on the NHS, considering my Dad and a friend have died in the last year while awaiting treatment for an actual illness that the NHS was too underfunded and understaffed to provide.

[ArabeIIaScott]

'Thirty-six per cent of Britons agreed that “health insurance systems should cover the cost of gender transition no differently than the costs of other medical procesures” — the fourth-lowest proportion of the 30 countries.'

I'd imagine the UK is going to be an outlier on this question internationally partly because our NHS is not the norm, so health insurance isn't an issue for most people here.

[ArabeIIaScott]

https://www.ipsos.com/en-ca/webinar-lgbt-pride-2023-survey-insights

I cant find a link to the survey itself, but there's a webinar this month about it.

[AmaryllisNightAndDay]

The UK came third-last of 30 countries when ranked in public support “that transgender teenagers should be allowed to receive gender-affirming care, such as counselling and hormone replacement treatment, with parental consent”.

That's an atrociously designed question. I'd be cross of one of my undergraduates put something like that on a survey (and my students don't even do such complex topics). Is the question about "gender affirming" care (in which case it needs to clarify what "gender affirming" means) or is it about counselling and hormone treatment, in which case those need two separate questions.

I thought IPSOS were experts on survey design?

[Circumferences]

@MagicSpring

The point is whether trans people should be able to use opposite sex spaces, not single sex ones.

And counselling is good, but affirmation-only counselling is not really counselling.

That was also my first thought.

Trans people are obviously welcome to use single sex spaces in line with their sex, (with exemptions for transmen on testosterone who shouldn't complete against women in sport YadaYada)

[Boiledbeetle]

well that's the figures on badly written questions.

I'd bet at this point straight forward un biased no-one waffle questions would show that even higher numbers of people whilst wanting everyone to be treated with dignity, have started to see what's actually happening.

And I'd bet the majority would agree that doing irreversible things to children is not a good idea and that men shouldn't be allowed in women's single sex spaces, and women shouldn't be in men's.

[SidewaysOtter]

@bellac11

So we are world leaders in safeguarding then?

Quite! TERF Island may have its faults but we are knocking the socks off other countries on this front.

[nilsmousehammer]

So in fact British people are sympathetic to and supportive of trans people and do not want them to face discrimination and are also sympathetic to and supportive of the needs of female humans and don't want them to face exclusion and discrimination either.

Hardly a failing is it? Well done Britain!

Third spaces. Answers that work for everyone's NEEDS equally.