The Minister for Women and Equalities, Bridget Phillipson is quoted in the Telegraph as saying trans people must not be used as a “political punchbag”.
Which confirms what many women already knew: despite the job title, her priority is not women.
If it was, she’d acknowledge that it’s women - not trans people - who’ve been the ‘political punchbag’ of the past decade. And that women have been:
- Pressured to deny biological reality - or risk jobs, livelihoods and professional standing
- Forced to share single-sex spaces with men - in changing rooms, prisons, rape-crisis centres, hospital wards and workplaces
- Written out of their own language and replaced with terms like “pregnant people” and “cervix-havers” - then told they’re bigoted for objecting
- Dragged through tribunals, and court cases - just to keep rights that already existed
- Pushed aside while men take women’s places - medals, records, prizes, awards and commercial contracts
- Threatened and abused for speaking up
This is what it looks like to be used as a political punchbag. Being told to stay out of women’s spaces if you’re a man is not - that’s just basic safeguarding practice.
And the final betrayal? Philippson has refused to sign off the updated guidance from the Equality and Human Rights Commission - meant simply to give clarity on single-sex spaces after the Supreme Court ruling.
After years of women carrying the consequences, our women’s minister has chosen not to act on our behalf. And prioritise men’s feelings over women’s safety, privacy and dignity.
Which tells us exactly who is expected to keep taking the blows.