Reply from my Labour MP

[LadyBracknellsHandbagg]

I wrote to my newly elected Labour MP after the SC ruling asking him how his government were going to support WOMEN’S rights to access SSS, and I finally received this reply yesterday. As you will see, there’s not one mention of the word woman or women. At least he’s clarified that Labour don’t support women.

’Thank you for contacting me about this Supreme Court ruling and transgender rights in our country.

This ruling comes at a time when the discourse – and media commentary – around transgender rights can often be overly simplistic, toxic and politically charged, leading to debates in Parliament and the media that may not accurately reflect the lived experiences of trans people. As responsible politicians, we must understand that this concerns real people's lives, dignity, and fundamental rights. Indeed, Human Rights Watch has expressed concern that this ruling threatens the rights of trans people, and we must not ignore these very real implications.

Recent statistics continue to show concerning levels of hate crime against trans people, with 4,700 hate crimes committed against trans people in the year leading to March 2023, representing an 11% increase on the previous year. While some argue that rising numbers result from better recording of hate crime, I do not believe this accounts for the full scale of the increase. We must make the UK safer for trans people and ensure every victim of hate crime is treated equally.

Following this Supreme Court ruling, it is more important than ever that we focus on supporting trans people through these challenging times. While the decision may provide some legal clarity around single-sex services, campaigners rightly point out that it could lead to discrimination, especially over employment issues. We must ensure that this legal development does not become a license for discrimination or prejudice.

We must also continue supporting the implementation of the Equality Act 2010, ensuring that while legal definitions may be clarified, the fundamental principle of treating all people with respect and dignity remains paramount.

I will continue to advocate for policies that protect trans people from discrimination and ensure that they can access the healthcare, support services, and basic respect that every person deserves.

Alongside colleagues in Parliament, I am engaging with the EHRC to ensure that trans voices are not overlooked or side-lined following this Supreme Court ruling.’

I love your reply, LadyBracknellsHandbagg, we obviously delve into the same Handbaaaagggg of Sarcasm to respond to eejits like your MP😁

That's a dreadful email from your MP, but I love your response. Strikes the right balance of seriousness and sarcasm.

I had a very different reply from my MP, also one of the newly-elected ones last year. I'd been in touch with him and met with him when he was standing for election. He was reasonably open-minded, but didn't know much about the issue and I got the feeling it would never be anywhere close to his priority list, but at least he wasn't batshit crazy. Anyway, I wrote to him after the SC judgement and got this:

"Thank you for getting back in touch with me regarding the important issue of women's rights to single-sex spaces in the wake of the Supreme Court judgment. I appreciate your engagement on this matter and welcome the opportunity to share my position.

As your Labour MP, I am committed to ensuring the safety, privacy, and dignity of all women, which is why I support the provision and protection of single-sex spaces as set out in Labour's landmark Equality Act. These spaces are vital for many women, offering security and comfort in various settings, such as refuges and changing rooms. You may recall that Labour committed to the protection of single-sex provisions in our manifesto. The Supreme Court has clarified the basis on which single-sex spaces can be made available, and relevant ministers will work with institutions in the public, voluntary and private sectors to ensure compliance with the law.

At the same time, it is essential that we uphold principles of inclusion and respect for all individuals, and the Supreme Court confirmed the importance of rights for all protected characteristics. Balancing these priorities requires thoughtful dialogue and policy-making, grounded in compassion and community understanding. I am dedicated to advocating for measures that ensure women feel safe and respected while fostering a society that is inclusive for everyone. Your input is invaluable in shaping these efforts, and I welcome any further thoughts you might have."

A bit of both-sides-ing at the end there which I could have done without, but overall a much better attempt than the OP's MP!

🥰🥰

At least yours actually read your email and put some thought into the reply, but I agree about the mealy mouthed bit at the end, they can’t help themselves can they?!

I had a very similar exchange with my Lib Dem MP a few months ago. He sent me a reply that was almost entirely about trans people and didn't mention women. With the help of those in FWR I put together this reply to him, but heard nothing back.

"Thank you for your letter which sets out in great detail your commitment to the safety and dignity of transgender people.

My letter was about the safety and dignity of women, who you don't mention at all in your reply, nor do you say whether or not you will abide by the Supreme Court's clarification of the law - did you mistakenly send out the wrong letter by any chance?"

Wow OP, what a bullshit reply you got - full of waffly nonsense and buzz words that mean very little, how disappointing.

I love your response, but to be honest I wouldn’t be telling them that you will spoil your vote in the next election. As much as it is how you feel and may be what you actually do, it doesn’t harm their election chances as much as a vote for their competitor would.

Did he read your letter? Doesn't look like it. And totally misunderstands the scope of the SC judgement and that it also protected gender reassignment, and the rights of transmen to maternity care!

And AI won't write anything anti-trans as it's 'controversial'.

Sadly I'm not surprised. There are still too many MPs on the left who don't give a shit about women and they're so into their anti discriminatory bubble that they don't care what the plebs think. And I'm a lefty!
I had a similar response from Amnesty UK after their boss appeared on woman's hour. I wrote a friendly complaint making it very clear that I supported trans people's rights and wanted them to have as comfortable life as possible. The reply came back with a full on large paragraph about hostility and violence towards trans people. So I replied challenging this approach because all I'd said was I found the bosses responses on the programme to be lacking. I ended up having quite a conversation with the customer relations person, via emails, and gently made my position clear that not wanting trans women in single sex facilities for females was in no way saying I condoned violence and discrimination towards them. I also asked for my comments in all the emails to be forwarded to the boss. Who knows if they were 🤷🏼♀️

Don't know where the ♀️ came from 🤔

After a few green shoots lately, I was musing that maybe by the time of the next election I'd be able to vote Labour again, but then you read responses like the OP's, and realise they are still a basket-case. Obviously it's 'only' a back-bench MP, but it's still worrying.

I'm not so sure. Obviously there are plenty of batshit crazy Labour MPs. But I don't think the party as a whole is where it was, and the ideologues are on the back benches rather than calling the shots as they were a few years ago. Wes Streeting has upheld the Cass Review, and Bridget Philippson has just waved aside 'concerns' expressed by the captured committees and gone ahead and appointed Mary-Ann Stephenson as incoming chair of the EHRC amidst howls of protest about her being a transphobe. It looks to me as though Labour are heading in the right direction, though not yet where they should be.

Those of us in Scotland are going to have a decision to make next spring when we elected the next Holyrood parliament. Let's hope Scottish Labour have established some credibility on women's rights by the time we get there.

Oh dear, every day I think the Labour Party cant sink any further any further and then they do.

The letter in the OP is just outrageous and basically says that the MP cant be relied on to support 50% plus of his constituents.

OP's reply is great.

But for those who have followed the behaviour of the WEC behaviour first to Lady Falkner and then Mary-Ann Stephenson, it is quite clear a large part of the Labour Party are anti women and pro trans. (there was a news paper article only in the last couple of days saying that the majority of Labour MPs are now going so far as to claim the Supreme Court ruling isn't valid and so can be disregarded.)

I think the MPs reply should be shared with groups like Sex Matters, etc., so they can use it to show just how entrenched anti woman attitudes are in the Labour Party.

I would absolutely reply to this and say, "Thanks for the cut and pasted reply that you are clearly sending to everyone who writes to you about the Supreme Court judgment. However, I asked what you plan to do to support WOMEN, a word which you did not use even once in your reply. Could you try again please?"

Quite apart from any other consideration, these c & p responses are an insult to constituents. How fucking dare they?

@LadyBracknellsHandbagg

That is a truly glorious reply to an appalling reply from your MP. At least you and @deadpan received replies. I have written twice to our newly-elected Labour MP (the first ever in our normally Lib/Dem or Tory Welsh constituency) and have not even had the courtesy of an acknowledgement, let alone a response. However, given that he's one of the signatories to the hostile statement by a group of left-wing Labour MPs after the Supreme Court judgment, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. According to YouGov's latest prediction, if an election were held tomorrow, Reform would win here. There could be a lot of one-term Labour MPs.

1. go and see him, it’s much harder to waffle on about men with special identities in person; and 2) totally name and shame!

Bloody hell. He just doesn't give a flying F about women and their concerns just like my MP.

I have a feeling the Labour candidates chosen to contest constituencies with large Tory majorities in the last election were not exactly the cream of the crop. The best candidates would have been selected for very winnable seats, with less qualified/experienced ones allocated to what looked like unwinnable seats to give them some practice for the future. Unfortunately we're now lumbered with them for the next 4 years.

Was it one of the two new Labour ones in the Southend constituencies by any chance?

If you wanted to play trans bingo with his (non) reply to you, you'd pretty much have a full house I think.

I'm not convinced there's any point at all in contacting MPs about this, and maybe not about anything actually. They seem to have so little sway, and I won't say power because that's obviously not theirs to hold. It seems to be civil servants who hold all the cards and threaten to demonstrate and strike if things don't go their way. The Blob.

This sounds like the MP where my DM lives. Overturned a permanent Tory majority and is extremely inexperienced and fairly clueless. Removed his pronouns from his insta bio during the election then put them back again as soon as the fool got in. Says it all.

Saying that, there’s probably a fair few intelligence challenged individuals it could apply to.

I'd love to hear if you get a response to your reply op but I'm not holding my breath.

That was coming up for me yesterday too! It seems to appear with this emoji 🤷♀️

There it is again! 😂😂