Labour politicians are involved in a major U-turn on trans rights following the publication of the landmark Cass review into NHS gender services yesterday.
Last night, Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting admitted he had been wrong to ever say that “trans women are women”, as the woke row once again reignited.
Mr Streeting, who once parroted the trans mantra that “Trans men are men, trans women are women, get over it”, said he now reflects that his position has been wrong.
Asked if he regrets his stridently pro-trans position, he replied: “I absolutely take the criticism on the chin.”
This morning his fellow shadow cabinet member Louise Haigh admitted to Sky News that colleagues have “felt unable to express their views” and said Labour will now be a safe space for “gender critical” views.
Ms Haigh said Ms Streeting was right to apologise for telling trans-critical activists to “get over it”.
She said: “I absolutely agree and I think Wes Streeting was right to hold his hands up and say he was wrong to use language like ‘get over it’.
“I don’t think that’s appropriate in any political discussion, but particularly one where the issues are so sensitive and potentially impactful as they are in this one.”
This morning, Health Secretary Victoria Atkins accused Labour of having “spent the last 10 years trying to shut women up when it comes to this”.
She told Sky News that Labour “have been part of the ideology, the culture wars, creating an atmosphere of intimidation for anyone who dared to question this ideology”.
She said: “So it is a little bit rich of the Labour Party to be lecturing the rest of us now having been so forthright in their support for this ideology in the past.”
Her criticism was backed up by Labour MP and women’s rights campaigner Rosie Duffield, who was placed under investigation by her party just last year for campaigning against trans ideology.
Ms Duffield, the MP for Canterbury, said that the women who exposed the scandal of children and trans conversion services had been “blanked, sidelined and dismissed” by male leaders simply for speaking up.
Sir Keir Starmer himself has flip-flopped repeatedly on trans rights, with the leader rowing back from saying that “trans women are women” to now stating that a woman is an “adult female”.
He also clarified that 99.9% of women do not have penises.
Yesterday, feminist Julie Lindell demanded an apology from Mr Streeting for failing to back her gender-critical views when he was president of the National Union of Students.
She said of Mr Streeting: “Glad to see you are now openly critical of the gender ideology that led to the atrocities against children outlined in the Cass report.
“I am open to accepting an apology from you. In 2008, when you were NUS president, I was no-platformed alongside five fascist groups for ‘transphobia’.
“I contacted you and asked for your help. You gave none. I asked you to condemn those that had orchestrated the no-platforming, and you refused.
Ms Duffield replied: “Thank you for leading us all here Julie.
“Without you, most of us wouldn’t have had a clue what had been happening to children who were far too young to have the critical faculties or agency to consent.”
Last night Boris Johnson hailed women’s rights campaigner and author JK Rowling, saying her views on gender are “what 95% of the population secretly think”.
He added that people “don’t have the guts” to speak out like Ms Rowling “because they’re worried that they will offend somebody”.
Labour also came under fire from the alternative side of the debate, with the Momentum campaign group saying Labour’s response to the Cass Review was “highly disappointing”.
Trans activists are claiming the Cass Review was ideologically biased against transgender children.
One student Labour branch in Sheffield condemned Wes Streeting’s u-turn, saying the Labour Party must show “full solidarity” with trans people and ignore the ‘invalid’ findings of the landmark health report.
