So far, this Labour government has been very anti-LGBT , particularly against transgender people. Here are some examples of why I think things will not improve in any meaningful way while this current Labour government is in power.
The CASS Review
The current government has recently responded to a petition requesting an independent review of the CASS report, which was commissioned during the tenure of the previous Conservative government.
Upon the publication of the report last year, numerous medical professionals from various global regions expressed their dissent, asserting that they do not endorse this review due to its perceived political and ideological bias.
The Labour government has declined to grant a full review of the petition and has reaffirmed its commitment to implementing all recommendations of the CASS review, in conjunction with the National Health Service (NHS).
It has been noted by the esteemed independent journalist Erin Reed, who happens to be a transgender woman herself, has reported that certain data referenced in the CASS report originated from Reddit. The author of the CASS report, Dr Hillary Cass, has also met with anti-transgender movements in the US and UK, like the LGB Alliance.
LGB Alliance has been designated a hate group by numerous countries, including Canada and Ireland.
Higher Education Freedom of Speech Act 2023
In January 2025, the current government announced its intention to reintroduce the Higher Education Freedom of Speech Act 2023 into law during the current parliamentary session. This legislation, which was passed by the previous conservative government in 2023, was paused by the Labour government upon assuming power after winning the General Election last year.
What is the Higher Education Freedom Of Speech Act 2023?
The Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 aims to strengthen protections for free speech and academic freedom in English universities and students’ unions. Key provisions include:
Universities must establish codes of practice to ensure lawful free speech and academic freedom, monitored by the Office for Students (OfS), which can investigate complaints and impose fines.
A statutory tort allows individuals to seek compensation for breaches of free speech rights.
Non-disclosure agreements are banned in cases of bullying, harassment, or misconduct.
Students’ unions face reduced legal burdens to avoid excessive costs.
The Act balances promoting free speech with preventing unlawful speech, such as incitement or harassment.
The Problem
The bill originated as a response to a series of high-profile student protests against controversial campus speakers. One notable example was the invitation of gender-critical academic Kathleen Stock to speak at the Oxford Union. Stock’s appearance elicited widespread condemnation from various Oxford colleges and over 100 Oxford academics. It also resulted in violent death threats being sent to the university’s LGBTQ president and a protest during her speech where a student affixed their hand to the floor.
Despite its passage, the bill failed to become law due to a prompt suspension shortly after Labour’s resounding victory in the 2024 General Election. This was prompted by widespread criticism regarding the potential for hate speech promotion through the legislation, particularly the allowance of Holocaust deniers to engage in campus discussions and hate speech towards the LGBT community.
Wes Streeting as Health Secretary
Wes Streeting, the current health secretary and MP for Ilford North, seems to be a very transphobic politician, despite him being part of the LGBT community as a gay man.
He met with transgender children who begged him not to make the ban on puberty blockers permanent after the previous Conservative government put a temporary ban on them. He extended the ban on puberty blockers for transgender children indefinitely, even from private medical providers, shortly after that meeting.
Wes Streeting also seems to be dragging his feet when it comes to helping transgender adults get medical help, as the gender clinics around England and Wales are still massively underfunded and understaffed. Most transgender adults now have to go to private clinics to get the HRT they need. Not everyone can afford to do that, so they have to continue to suffer from gender dysphoria with no help and/or try to self medicate.
It is also noteworthy that Wes Streeting has met and expressed sympathy with parents of transgender children who desired their children to undergo conversation therapy.
Not going ahead with changes on GRC
During the General Election Labour promised to change the “undignified” process of gender transition by replacing the panel of doctors and lawyers which approve gender recognition certificates (GRC) with a register system, It had been criticised by campaigners as “Self-ID by the back door”, letting people change their legal gender too easily.
However, multiple sources said that the reforms were not a priority for ministers, although I think they mainly mean Wes Streeting. They expect the plans to quietly “go away”.
Conclusion
All of this originates from a political party that publicly expressed their intention to respect transgender individuals within the United Kingdom during the recent general election. However, as a transgender woman, I often feel like a second-class citizen within my own country.
I have come to the conclusion that the situation will deteriorate significantly before it improves. This is particularly concerning given the developments emanating from the United States, which will inevitably impact us on this side of the Atlantic, and in a way it already has.
Labour so far has been a very big disappointment, as I mentioned in a previous post, The Labour Party is a huge disappointment..
Not only are they a disappointment for the LGBT community but other communities as well. They seem to be shifting more to the right every day, all the while ignoring the voters who put them in power, namely the progressive voters.
All they seem to care about is the economy and pleasing Reform UK voters. Their recent social media campaign demonstrates this perfectly, practically bragging about how many people they have deported. Not only that, but the campaign was all done in the colours of the Reform Party.
As I have stated in a previous post, Why I changed political party allegiance?, I left the Labour Party after Wes Streeting made the ban on puberty blockers for transgender youth indefinite.
Since then, the party has seemed to have gone even more to the right of politics than ever before, which is very bad news for the LGBT community.
These days, I am ashamed I campaigned for and stuck up for on social media the Labour Party in the run-up to the last general election. I will not be doing so again.
Are there any campaign promises made to the transgender community during the election last year that they intend to keep?
The Labour Party campaign slogan was Change. It was even on the front of their manifesto pamphlet.
So far, all the transgender community has seen is the same.
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