That's Who We Have To Fight For! Part 1.

Update 623. This Is Terf Month. #BeMorePorcupine.

The news and views continue to flood in to Dusty Towers so this is another two parter, dear readers.

We are in Terf Month ( to counteract Queer Month) and we are featuring great speeches on the theme of women’s rights. Please keep those suggestions coming in. Please send a link if you can. Thanks to those readers who have already sent in great suggestions.

Next up is a moving speech at a 2023 Let Women Speak at Reformers’ Tree from an American expat who has a non-verbal daughter.

Thanks to two wonderful readers for suggested pieces.

Some of the linked pieces below may be behind a paywall.

The For Women Scotland Judgment - The Aftermath

Sex Matters have brought us this update (20 June).

This week I travelled to Edinburgh, at the invitation of Sandie Peggie and her solicitor Margaret Gribbon, to accompany them to meet MSPs at Holyrood.

Maya Forstater and Sandie Peggie

Sandie’s case against Fife Health Board and Dr Beth Upton is due to restart in July, and she has now also issued a claim against her union, the Royal College of Nursing. Like me, she stumbled into the battle to protect women’s rights by assuming that her workplace would be reasonable when she said something straightforward and ordinary; that men should not be in women’s changing rooms. She found herself making headlines she never expected and has shown a fierce resolve to see it through.

I first heard Sandie tell her story in January 2024, when Neale Hanvey, then MP for Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath, put me in touch with her. Though I’ve heard her tell it dozens of times since then, it hasn’t got any less shocking: the hospital where she had worked as a nurse did not have a policy on whether trans-identifying staff could use opposite-sex facilities, but when Dr Upton joined the hospital and presumed that he could, management rolled out the red carpet for him. There was no equality impact assessment, and apparently no concern at all for female staff. Sandie left the changing room on two occasions, and raised the issue with her manager. When nothing was done, she expressed her discomfort directly to Dr Upton. Then he made a complaint of harassment against her and she was suspended.

A simple policy, making clear to patients, staff and management that individuals are not allowed to use opposite-sex facilities, would have prevented the whole debacle, saving both Sandie Peggie and Dr Upton being dragged into the public eye. A separate space could have been found for Dr Upton to change in, and clear expectations could have been established from the start. Sandie would still be at work. NHS Fife would not have spent hundreds of thousands of pounds of public money on a hopeless legal case.

While I was in Scotland we also delivered a legal letter before action to the Scottish Government. We had been working on this with lawyers after the Scottish Government told us, in an online meeting earlier this month with For Women Scotland and other groups, that it was reviewing its policies in light of the Supreme Court judgment, but that nothing would change until the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s code of practice for service providers was finalised. This leaves women like Sandie Peggie and their employers exposed.

The letter before action says that everyone should be following the law now, not some time in the future. It puts the Scottish Government on notice that we will take legal action if it continues to delay changing its policies to reflect the Supreme Court judgment when it comes to separate-sex facilities such as toilets and changing rooms.

…..

The Scottish Government is not the only body failing to comply with the judgment. Our inbox is full of people telling us that their local council, their employer, and public and private bodies are doing the same thing.

This is the first letter before action we have sent on single sex-services since the Supreme Court ruled, but it certainly won’t be the last.

Next week we will publish a template letter and legal advice to help you push organisations you interact with to comply.

In the meantime, the deadline is coming up for the EHRC consultation (it’s Monday 30th June). If you haven’t responded yet please do so this weekend. Tell the EHRC to provide simple, clear guidance that gives service providers confidence to say No to trans-identifying men who think they have a right to use spaces provided for the privacy and dignity of women and girls.

Respond to the EHRC consultation

UK - The Banter Ban Bill

Amongst other things, the Employment Rights Bill currently going through Parliament will make pub and restaurant owners potentially liable if an employee is offended by ‘banter’ that is overheard and which his or her employer fails to deal with. Andrew Doyle hosted an edition of Free Speech Nation before he headed back to the States and discussed this draconian piece of legislation with Toby Young, director of the Free Speech Union.

Scotland - Scrubbing The Records Of ‘Trans Criminals’?

Evidence has appeared in Scotland that the criminal records of larping men may have had offences prior to them ‘transitioning’ wiped from the record as reported by Feminist Legal Clinic.

‘Disgraceful’ to suggest police wipe records of trans criminals (20 June)

Scotland’s Justice Secretary has said it is “disgraceful” to suggest the criminal records of trans people are being wiped by Police Scotland.

Angela Constance admitted the force had made an “error” after a newspaper report claimed a transgender killer had their record “scrubbed”.

According to the Daily Record, a solicitor had requested a previous convictions disclosure from the Crown Office on prosecution witnesses in a case involving a conflict at HMP Greenock.

The newspaper reports killer Alex Stewart – who changed their name from Alan Baker – was separated from their criminal past, with the disclosure returning without any convictions under Stewart’s new name.

A spokesperson for Police Scotland said: “We are aware of an issue relating to the previous convictions of a victim, which were omitted from a report submitted ahead of a case heard at Greenock Sheriff Court.

“The issue has been rectified and work is ongoing to prevent similar scenarios taking place in the future. Officers are continuing to liaise with the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS).”

Alba MSP Ash Regan claimed she had evidence that Stewart’s case was not a “mere administrative error” but was part of “systemic data corruption” driven by “years of unlawful self-ID policy”.

Tory MSP Sharon Dowey described the situation as a “shambles”.

She added: “We know that dangerous male offenders have gamed the SNP [ Scottish National Party] system to serve their sentences in women’s prisons, and now they are even getting their criminal records wiped.”

Source: ‘Disgraceful’ to suggest police wipe records of trans criminals – Constance

https://feministlegal.org/disgraceful-to-suggest-police-wipe-records-of-trans-criminals-constance-scotland-msn/

Stephen Fried

British comedian and author, Stephen Fry decided it would be a good idea to have a go at JK Rowling. “She has been radicalised, I fear,” he told the podcast The Show People, “Perhaps by Terfs, but also by the vitriol that is thrown at her.” He added: “I’m afraid she seems to be a lost cause for us.” Helen Joyce discusses this with Alex Phillips on Talk TV.

Additionally, if you live in a glasshouse… See this two part investigation into Stephen Fry by Malcolm Clark:

https://malcolmrichardclark.substack.com/p/the-shameful-secrets-of-stephen-fry?utm_source=publication-search

https://malcolmrichardclark.substack.com/p/stephen-fry-and-his-boy-problem?utm_source=publication-search

Ireland - Toy Show and TENI.

In Ireland, since its first presentation in 1975, the Toy Show has become a cultural institution; it is often the most-watched programme of the year on Irish television (and its overall viewership has increased steadily in recent years), and being featured on the Toy Show has been said to have a major boost to sales of a product.

Gript News reports:

Jason Osborne ( BelongTo and TENI among orgs receiving Toy Show funding 21 June) reports:

The Transgender Equality Network Ireland and Belong To Youth Services are among the 169 recipients of the RTÉ Toy Show Appeal grant awards in 2025, with one TD saying he’d question the “continued automatic funding” of certain organisations just because they align with “current trends or ideologies”.

TENI and Belong To are set to receive €15,000 and €40,000 respectively, despite both organisations having been the subjects of significant controversy in the past.

TENI said that it was “over the moon” to share that it had been selected as one of the grant recipients this year.

Commenting on the decision to award both organisations Toy Show Appeal money, Independent Ireland TD Ken O’Flynn said that “it’s entirely reasonable for members of the public to raise questions when taxpayer or publicly raised funds are directed to organisations that have been the subject of significant public debate or controversy”.

“I’ve said before — and I stand by it — that I believe there are two biological sexes, with intersex as a rare and medically defined exception [ Dusty - not actually an exception] . That view is grounded in science and common sense, and it’s one shared by many people in this country. At the same time, I’ve always advocated that we treat people who are struggling with their identity with dignity, respect and compassion. We can be both truthful and kind — those two things are not in conflict.

“What I would question, however, is the continued automatic funding of certain organisations simply because they align with current trends or ideologies. It’s important that we scrutinise where money is going, particularly when it comes from generous donations made by the Irish public, often intended for vulnerable children,” the Cork TD said, adding that the grants should prioritise services that are providing “direct, measurable support to children and families in crisis — especially those facing poverty, homelessness, or serious illness”.

The full piece is here:

https://gript.ie/belongto-and-teni-among-orgs-receiving-toy-show-funding/

Graham Linehan also comments very strongly on this:

Australia - Re Devin

I first reported on the amazing family law case of Re Devin here:

https://dustymasterson.substack.com/p/the-fiction-of-gender-dysphoria

It has subsequently been revealed that the expert who Justice Strum severely criticised in the case is Dr Michelle Telfer of Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne. In a post on the Glinner Update, Jenny Nabben looks in more detail at Dr Telfer.

Judgement Day

A judicial spotlight falls on Australian gender clinics

Jun 20, 2025

In a landmark decision on April 4, 2025, Justice Andrew Strum of the Australian Family Court delivered a groundbreaking ruling against the Royal Children's Hospital’s (RCH) gender clinic and criticised its "affirmation " model (which includes social transition, puberty blockade, cross-sex hormones and sex reassignment surgeries).

Judge Strum’s ruling was highly critical of Dr. Michelle Telfer under whose leadership the RCH gender clinic has seen an explosion in the numbers of children attending – up from 18 children in 2012 to 1,290 by 2023 - an over 7,000% increase.

In Strum’s 130-page ruling, he said Dr. Telfer; “…cheapened the suffering of victims of Nazism when she suggested a landmark review (the UK’s Cass Review) which recommended limitations on medication for gender-dysphoric children formed part of a wave of transgender oppression.”

Background to the Case

Michelle Telfer was Director of RCH gender clinic from 2012 to 2022 and has been arguably the most influential figure in Australian gender medicine – she has:

Authored the 2018 Australian Standards of Care (SOC) and Treatment Guidelines for Transgender and Gender Diverse Children and Adolescents (TGGDC).

Played a pivotal role in the 2017 Re Kelvin court case where she advocated for the removal of Family Court approval when prescribing puberty blockers.

Promoted the affirmation medical model as “evidence-based,” and “best practice” and providing evidence to the Family Court judges that puberty blockers are fully reversible.

Justice Andrew Strum described Telfer’s role as an ‘expert’ in the Re Devin case as akin to being the "proverbial judge, jury and executioner” while Telfer herself conceded under cross-examination that her opinion was essentially self-endorsement.

The full piece is here:

https://grahamlinehan.substack.com/p/judgement-day

I also reported on a formal complaint having been laid against Dr Telfer to the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency:

https://dustymasterson.substack.com/p/freedom-or-death

In Re Devin Justice Strum was critical of a previous family court case called Re Jamie. The judge ( now retired) in the latter case has admitted that, given the current state of evidence, that case might now be decided differently - as reported by Feminist Legal Clinic:

Retired judge Steven Strickland says key puberty blocker case ‘may have been different’ in light of new evidence (21 June)

A judge who helped decide a landmark case giving parents – not courts – the authority to approve puberty blockers for their children says the outcome might have been different if today’s medical evidence had been available.

Former Family Court judge Steven Strickland, who sat on the Full Court in Re Jamie, which authorised parents to prescribe children puberty blockers without the court’s consent, told The Australian that advanced medical evidence had shown it was “pretty clear” the treatment was risky.

“The medical evidence was the other way in Re Jamie, namely that the court could at least authorise that first step, because the medical evidence was that there was no risk involved,” he said. “But now that’s quite different and there’s no dispute about that, that there are risks involved.”

In the Jamie decision, then-judge Strickland, then-judge Mary Finn and then-chief justice Diana Bryant agreed that puberty blockers could be undone, and, as such, did not pose a serious danger to the child.

Justice Strum, after quoting the Jamie decision, said the evidence adduced in the Devin case “gives rise to the need to consider whether those findings, based on medical evidence a decade ago, remain factually correct for the determination of this case”.

“However, it is not for a court at first instance to consider, or even opine, in relation to the correctness of the legal principles established by the Full Court, which are binding upon it pending any further appellate reconsideration,” he wrote.

Mr Strickland told The Australian he had “no concern” about the outcome reached in Jamie, because “a judge can only reach a decision on the basis of the evidence before him or her, because a judge is not a medical expert”.

Mr Strickland also sat on the Full Court for Re Kelvin in 2017, which removed the requirement for court authorisation of the provision of stage two treatment – cross-sex hormones. He said if Jamie were heard again, “there could be a different” decision in light of new medical evidence that there were risks involved with puberty blockers.

“With Re Kelvin, I don’t think there would be a different decision, frankly, because Re Kelvin is not inconsistent with what’s happening before the court,” he said. “It’s not a case of revisiting, certainly Re Kelvin. Re Jamie, a different kettle of fish perhaps.”

[FLC Ed: I would suggest that the Full Court urgently needs to reconsider both Re Jamie and Re Kelvin before more harm is done to vulnerable young people.]

Source: Subscribe to The Australian | Newspaper home delivery, website, iPad, iPhone & Android apps

https://feministlegal.org/retired-judge-steven-strickland-says-key-puberty-blocker-case-may-have-been-different-in-light-of-new-evidence-the-australian/

UK - Assisted Suicide Bill

As many readers will know, the appalling Assisted Suicide Bill scraped through its third reading in the House of Commons yesterday by 314 votes to 291 votes.

We now have to hope that the House of Lords can throw a spanner in the works!!

Here are Dennis Kavanagh’s thoughts:

https://x.com/jebadoo2/status/1936132847716245991?s=58

And here is what the head of the Roman Catholic church in England and Wales is saying:

https://thecatholicherald.com/cardinal-nichols-we-will-close-catholic-hospices-and-care-homes-if-mps-vote-for-assisted-suicide/

Endpieces

I am splitting the endpieces between the two parts 😊

From Tenaciously

#BeMorePorcupine

#LiesAreNotFreedom

#AdultHumanFemale

#LetWomenSpeak

#LGB✂️TQ

#JoinFreeSpeechUnion

#TransNHS

#TRAsRewriteHistory

#NeverSurrender

#NeverForget

#TruthWillTriumph

#WeWillWin

Part 2 will follow shortly, Terven.

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