Janice Turner in the Times today

[13RidgmontRoad]

“It is entirely feasible for everyone, women and trans people, to enjoy swimming and sport. It requires no more than practical compromises, repurposed spaces, a few more gender neutral loos. But this would mean acknowledging biological sex exists, that sometimes female safety takes precedence over male feelings, and that the mantra “trans women are women” is not literally true.

“The Greens — plus some Labour folk and Lib Dems — will never concede this. (Nor will many trans activists, including groups like Bash Back, whose members pledge to defend their right to women’s spaces via threats and violence.) They prefer to live in a state of perpetual outrage about the impossibility of something they could instantly solve, even if it means escalating division and fear.”

Clear-minded and articulate as ever. I live in one of the affected councils and seeing our newly-elected councillors froth over this while umpteen public service, repair and welfare issues sail down the river has been quite something.

https://www.thetimes.com/comment/columnists/article/posturing-council-culture-war-over-single-sex-spaces-f9tlq8tcr

Google tells me that these are the key social issues facing South Derbyshire, Niblett's constituency. Bet her constituents are darn glad they've got her plugging away for them in Westminster

Housing and Infrastructure

• Affordability and Growth: High demand and new housing developments mean younger residents struggle to buy homes in their local villages.
• Public Services: Rapid population expansion places heavy strain on local infrastructure, leading to overcrowded schools and difficulties accessing nearby GPs and dentists.

Health and Wellbeing

• Health Inequalities: Significant gaps in life expectancy exist between affluent areas and more deprived urban pockets (such as parts of Newhall and Swadlincote).
• Physical Inactivity: High rates of physical inactivity among adults and rising childhood obesity create long-term public health hurdles.

Transport and Isolation

• Rural Isolation: Limited public transport connectivity in remote parts of the district makes it harder for non-drivers to reach vital services like hospitals and general practices.
• Social Isolation: Dispersed rural settlements heighten the risk of loneliness and isolation for vulnerable or older residents

no mention of dildos, weirdly

“Plugging away for them” 😱

It really irritates me every time someone describes the law/guidance as so complicated.

For a decent sized leisure centre that already has male, female and gender neutral (family) changing rooms - what exactly is complicated?

I've posted something similar on another thread but I think this repetition of words such as 'complicated' and 'unworkable' is to establish a narrative. I think the hope is that, if the words are used enough, they will be remembered and - regardless of whether or not they're correct - accepted as true, thereby creating an environment where a push to reconsider the Equality Act would be heard sympathetically.

From her article: "But maybe Green councils like Southwark regard laws they don’t agree with as optional. (If so, I have thoughts about the Local Government Finance Act 1992, under which my council tax is levied.)"

My question, like Turner's, is can anyone play?

So asking someone to leave a space they have no legal right to be in is breaking the law?

Makes no sense to me.

Google tells me that these are the key social issues facing South Derbyshire, Niblett's constituency. Bet her constituents are darn glad they've got her plugging away for them in Westminster

@BernardBlacksMolluscs
Please tell me this double entendre was deliberate 😂

Not taking something that isn’t yours it not a compromise.

Yes exactly. No rights have been removed from trans people. The rights of women have merely been restored to where they belong.

Yeah that's really constructive. So long as the pretence continues that trans people (a tiny minority) who use cubicles alongside cis are the problem, the issue of cis male violence can be entirely avoided.

Sex offenders go where they want in public places. They place cameras, wait for women and children to be alone. And are likely to get a suspended sentence in the unlikely event they're prosecuted.

There's a reason CSA offenders hide within the anti-trans community, as they do within any group which regularly discusses children's safety.

These are two issues, and most of us can hold them in our minds concurrently.

That’s leaving aside issues like TIMs’ offending rates as against the general population (https://committees.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/18973/pdf) and the bad actor/men in frocks problem. I don’t want to share my rape crisis session with a natal male, even if he’s the pope. And I question his motives if he wants to be in there.

It might help if we could tell the difference between "cis"-identified male offenders and "trans" - identified male offenders.

Anyone like to jump in and give us a quick tutorial, so we can easily spot the bad ones by sight?

Anyone?