Culture Secretary: Ban trans women from female sports

[TotteringonGently]

Ban trans women from female sports, urges culture secretary

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/d92ebb21-9dbc-409d-a2d4-05936951f29d?shareToken=6df6d8e6e69510fce989597f5a2f4604

Following Victoria Atkins' barnstormer in Parliment yesterday, Lucy Frazer has come out categorically. It seems like the curtain is now fully pulled back!

One day in the future I think that women will look back with absolutely bafflement at how men were allowed to compete against women, just because they said they were also female. I think (hope) it will be seen as regressive and barking mad as the suffragettes having to fight for the right to vote. I just hope that any Labour government doesn't quietly start to row back.

It's all go at the moment.

A moment which has been a long time coming.

The sooner women's sports are for, um, women, the better.

Strong words, but she should do as Sharron Davies says and threaten to cut off their funding. Local authorities force women-only services to open up to men all the time by making grants conditional on including men.

Fantastic news

It's good that she links this to Cass. Any other minister who wishes to effect change can make reference to the Cass Report.

Absolutely this! But yes great to see her citing Cass as an example of what happens when people do nothing

I love this. I really hope Labour will continue in this direction. As I can't vote Tory

This feels a bit like Groundhog day.

Ministers have been pressurising sporting bodies to do this for a couple of years and we all get our hopes up and then nothing really happens. I know they don't want to legislate in relation to this and I do understand why but perhaps there are other things that could be done to encourage sporting regulators to do the right thing. Loss of funding if women are not offered a protected category at all levels of a sport perhaps? I know there have been a few wins but Sharon Davies says there are still around 60 sports in the UK that allow men to compete. It really is frustratingly slow progress.

Previous Mumsnet threads where our hopes were raised...

Jan 2023 Michelle Donelan
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/4720323-telegraph-government-to-crack-down-on-trans-athletes-competing-in-female-sports

June 2022 Nadine Dorries
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/4576866-nadine-dorries-to-meet-with-sporting-associations

Come on Lucy, make it happen! And not just for elite sports.

I suspect that sports organisers, and the public institutions that subsidise them, believe that trans-inclusive sport is necessary, to avoid discrimination on the grounds of gender reassignment.

What could put paid to this would be even just one declaratory judgment, that a lack of women-only sport is illegal sex discrimination, because the women are disadvantaged relative to the men (whose participation in sport is much less adversely affected by the inclusion of transmen).

It would need lots of highly technical evidence, all of which would shine lovely sunlight everywhere.

I’m amazed this hasn’t ended up in court yet. There’s the pool players (Lynne Pinches) case on the horizon but It’s odd that it’s not one of the more physical sports or in relation to the DSD athletes. I suppose at least if the pool players win there really can be no argument in relation to the more physical sporting events.

The cynic in me thinks “it’s obviously an election year”. On the other hand, if you see an open goal, aim for it. Labour, your ludicrous and wrong reverence for self ID is going to get one hell of an airing in the next few months I think…

Long overdue and yes - start cutting government funding from any spoprts body that wrecks women's elite and grassroots sport by handing it over to men.