Caroline ffiske was a Conservative Councillor for Eight Years. Published on 18 March 2021.

We have written to the joint Chairs of the Conservative Party to complain about the manner in which Crispin Blunt MP has misrepresented Government policy on a public platform. On Tuesday, in an article published on ConservativeHome, Crispin Blunt and Sue Pascoe, writing jointly, said that there had been an 'attack on Penny Mordaunt for stating the Government’s legal and moral position that “trans men are men and trans women are women”'.

This isn't the Government's position. After a lengthy consultation on options for reform to the Gender Recognition Act the Government decided to make no significant change to the process whereby people can obtain legal recognition of a 'gender' that differs from their biological sex. The Government accepted the argument, that this process, which creates a legal fiction, must remain carefully managed, with appropriate restrictions. It is therefore incorrect for Blunt and Pascoe to state that the Government's legal and moral position is that 'trans men are men and trans women are women'. This implies 'self-identification' which was rejected; and anyway, will, to the end of time, remain incorrect in science and reality. Biological sex is binary and immutable.

In our view is not acceptable for a Conservative MP to publicly misrepresent the Government's position on an issue. Particularly one where fact-checking is easy. People should speak the truth. MPs in particular should strive to speak the truth, to engage in honest debate about matters of importance. Not to do so undermines respect for MPs; in this case for the Conservative Party; and for our democracy. 

We seem to be living in a polarised age. We all need to recommit to debating issues that matter openly and tolerantly; to speaking carefully and truthfully; to trying to understand the views of political opponents. None of us will benefit if the centre doesn't hold. Many women are deeply concerned about the safeguarding and fairness implications created by 'gender ideology'. We are worried about the undermining of the concept of biological sex and the preferment of the 'self-identified' concept of gender, which by definition does away with boundaries and gatekeeping. 

To navigate these issues all of us should recommit to free speech, open tolerant debate, and, as much as we can, to the unbiased representation of the facts. That includes MPs; most importantly MPs.