Former Lib Dem MP thinks hospitals have to "apply" for single-sex exemptions under the Equality Act

[Fenlandia]

Lynne Featherstone has come up on these boards before. This tweet in response to one by Sonia Sodha about the Rishi Sunak speech yesterday is so odd:

"Having taken the Equality Act through Committee - Sonia it is you who are wrong. Individual establishments may discriminate if there is a legitimate reason. So if a hospital applies for an exemption on the grounds of safety for natal women - a court of laws would ultimately judge"

https://twitter.com/lfeatherstone/status/1709887516591984815

Where does it say in the Equality Act that courts rule on applications on whether hospitals etc can have a single-sex space? How can someone who apparently worked on this Act through the parliamentary process have such a basic misunderstanding on what it entails?

The Lib Dems make it up as they go along. Women can have a penis, TWAW, knowing facts and science makes you a bigot etc . It's clown world over there.

They're one of the worst, but all the parties are as useless. It's reminding me of that Irish politician who to his credit is being very outspoken about the negative impacts of the GRA now, but waved it through at the time without a second thought about the effect on women, children and gay people.

A Lib Dem MEP told me that a company board consisting of 10 men could be considered sexually balanced, if 5 of the men identified as women.

She's the one who said gender-critical women weren't welcome in the Lib Dems. I always enjoy telling doorstep canvassers that.

She's written 'applies for' instead of just 'applies'; I suspect it's was a typing error and she understands just fine. Her basic point is correct- a hospital can have single sex wards if they want. A court would have to judge (if the hospital was challenged) whether that's a reasonable exception to the EA. I'm pretty certain any court would find that it was.

Interesting to see a senior Lib Dem on the right side of this argument.

"I also have a message to those people who believe they can restrict trans women's rights, deny their human rights or exclude them from women-only spaces in the name of feminists. You are not feminists. Your views are not welcome in the Liberal Democrats."

Yes, this was her. Interesting that she's now saying exactly that.

Ha ha she's blocked me 😄

Of course hospitals can apply the single sex exemption.

The reality is that long before TRAs were such a loud voice, most organisation for financial reasons cut women only services.

And as said before, the reason the TRAs aer so sucessful is because for decades MRAs have disrespecting women.

In the 1990s funder were already starting to say it isn't relevant to have women only services, and it was nothing to do with TW - but was loudly applauded by 3rd wave feminists.

It's no typo. That's what she thinks is the law.

I remember.