Is this hustings question good enough?

[Garlicker]

It's good to see that Women's Issues are receiving focus here. To help establish the Candidates' grasp on these issues, I'd like to ask them:

• What is a woman? Can a woman have a penis or a prostate?

This question is important to more than half of the electorate because, when you're looking at rights and protections for women and girls, sex is an extremely relevant factor.

I want to send it off this weekend. More difficult than I expected to frame it compactly without seeming 'vexatious' 🙄 I'm certainly open to better suggestions!

The question I want answered is, do the candidates agree that single sex spaces and services are normal, necessary and legal? And if so, how do we ensure that spaces and services are indeed single biological sex when people can have the sex on their birth certificate and other legal documents changed?

My supplementary question is, if people with a GRC can legally be excluded from single sex spaces and services of their 'acquired gender' then what is the function of a GRC?

no, complete and total waste of time, such a bog standard and cliched question, most candidates will have a bog standard and cliched answer ready - this is in the top 10 expected questions at hustings, and is included in training on how to give bland meaningless answers.

I feared as much, @CandidateX! Will keep reading and put something smarter together (I hope).

Good idea, i also need to do this.

I think sex matters have an article about questions for candidates on their website.

For reasons of safety, fairness, dignity, and acknowledgement of religious practices, many people, especially women, wish to see the urgent reintroduction of sex-segregated provision, on the basis of sex at birth, in all areas where it previously existed, such as intimate spaces, sports, shortlists, and awards.

The loss of sex-segregated provision constitutes indirect discrimination against women and religious minorities under the Equality Act.

Do you agree, and, if so, what measures do you propose in order to bring this about?

My question to candidates will be -

'What will you be doing to ensure that services to ensure dignity, safety and fairness for women (such as rape crisis services, hospital wards and shelters) are able to use the single sex exemptions detailed in the Equality Act 2010 without censure or defunding?'

And as a follow up question,

'Given the excoriating judgement against Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre during a recent Employment Tribunal, how will you challenge the institutional capture of services in Scotland who are failing to support women who need single sex services?'

(Obviously the second is area specific)

Actually, if anyone electioneering comes to my door (unlikely), my questions will be as above with the exception of the Scottish Greens, SNP and Lib Dems who will be told -

'Vote for the women haters? No, obviously not'. (And shut door).

Try "Which is objectively real - biological sex or gender?"

These sorts of questions in and of themselves are useful to know. I wouldn't waste my one and only question on it however. The issue is broad, far from the 'single topic issue' I keep hearing people say it is.

I want to know what they intend to do in light of the Cass review.
Where they stand in the unfolding medical scandal
What role teachers and schools should play in developing a child's identity of self
Where male prisoners should be held
Whether they agree with gender neutral language in health settings
So many questions. All based of course on whether they think TWAW. However I'm prepared to accept politicians believing in TWAW jiggery pokery if they nevertheless uphold rights for children to grow up free from brain programming at school and damage from endocrinologists, and if they are prepared to safeguard sex based rights of access, participation in sports etc etc.

I've sent this to my lib dem candidate, who leaflet dropped me this morning:

I live in <village name> and had a copy of your leaflet through my door today. I particularly like that you're not a career politician. We have too many of those!

The main deterrant to me voting Lib Dem is the party's attitude to womens rights, single sex-spaces and, in particular, your party's proposals to reform the GRA to allow self-ID.

If you were to be elected what would you do reduce violence against women and girls? Do you agree that single sex services and spaces (in particular hospital wards, prisons, refuges and rape-crisis services) are important and neccessary to women's safety, privacy, and dignity? What would you do to ensure these spaces remain single biological sex when your party proposes to allow people to change their legal identity and documents to a preferred acquired gender on request?

Finally, what does your party intend to do in light of the recent Cass review?

I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

I will report back!

Yeah, this is the problem - the issue is deep and wide, yet is habitually dismissed by that weaselly inclusion of 'gender' with the concept of sex. The definition actually is pivotal, but it should be clear why it matters.

All in one question, without delivering a Ted talk. Argh!

think the question is "do you believe it is impossible to change sex either way or are you a complete fucking hatstand?" Simple enough I think.

😂 @lonelywater 👏

That's pretty good, but I imagine they would weasel it and say both are equally valid blah blah blah. It's impossible to cut through the shit these days without being labelled a far right bigot.

I have given up caring.

Good idea to plan something now! I’d like to go for something like this:

“I’m a biological female. At age twelve, I was thoroughly convinced I should’ve been born a boy. I HATED my female body, loathed feminine clothes, did everything in my power to look and pass as a boy. I took part in typically male sports and activities. All my friends were boys. I rejected anything that could possibly be seen as being girly. My hair was as short as I could get away with. I would’ve taken medication in a heartbeat, had my parents not put all of this down to being ‘a phase’. I’m now an extremely happily married woman with three kids. Should I have been given puberty blockers and cross sex hormones?”

Great Zapx but haven't they banned puberty blockers now? If adults want to take cross sex hormones that's up to them tbh.

@Pixiesgirl yeah you’re right, I’m so so relieved, but some candidates still seem to support overturning that?

just a bit. I dont trust Starmer any further than I can piss and with the kind of landslide he looks like getting then the tin foil hat nutters will think Christmas has come.

This is true. Carl Sagan's book The Demon-Haunted World has a chapter, The Dragon in My Garage, that describes how conspiraloons and crystal huggers get around scientific arguments - they always have another loopy answer to a rational objection.

I think GRCs were created to enable the holder to change their legal sex on official documents and for inheritance matters.

It was mainly so they could get married, same-sex marriage not being available at the time.

Wrt inheritance matters, section 16 stipulates that “the descent of any peerage or dignity or title of honour will take place as if a person recognised in the acquired gender were still of the birth gender”. The same rule also applies to inheritance of any property that passes with the peerage or title.

For us plebs, the 'daughter' mentioned in a will may be a male with a GRC. There is a mechanism for the disinherited to appeal but, without looking for case law, I wouldn't fancy their chances. It seems the Lords were keen to preserve their primogeniture and fuck the rest of us.

T'was ever thus!

I’m off to the local hustings on Monday next week and I’m planning to say:

“The question I’m going to ask appears to give some politicians some difficulty so to make it easier I’m making it multiple choice. What is a woman?
a) an adult human female
b) anyone who says they are
And if b) how will you protect women’s single sex spaces, sports, prisons and services”

is it weasle proof?