It’s hard to believe so many politicians are incapable of thinking for themselves. It doesn’t matter which party they belong to: the influence of gender ideology is as pervasive as ever. Some MPs even appear to have been unaware of the law and are shocked to discover, following the Supreme Court judgment earlier this year on the meaning of the word “sex”, that women-only spaces have legal protection.

A number of Labour MPs have challenged the ruling, apparently believing — or affecting to believe — that the Supreme Court is some kind of advisory body instead of the highest court in the land. Josh Newbury, MP for Cannock Chase, says it is “clear” to him that “trans women are women and trans men are men.” He denies that the Supreme Court has ruled otherwise, claiming that the judgment has been misinterpreted and “wrongly brought this into question”.

Even Reform UK, which has tried to position itself as a refuge for voters who are fed up with the trans-obsessed rhetoric of other parties, can’t keep its recruits on-message. A former prison governor, Vanessa Frake, had barely been announced as the party’s new justice advisor when she declared that trans women should not be barred from women’s prisons. Her argument, which is unusual to say the least, seems to be that some female prisoners are horrible people, so it makes no sense to exclude trans-identified males.

“There are equally vile women as there possibly are trans women, so it’s all about the risk assessments for me,” Frake told the Times. This is missing the point on a grand scale, as though women-only spaces are a reward for “nice” women rather than a principle which applies equally to everyone. It’s also an embarrassment for Nigel Farage, who has previously denounced “transgender indoctrination” in the UK.

For Women Scotland, the organisation which brought the Supreme Court case, was quick to challenge Farage about Frake’s remarks, asking whether “putting vulnerable women at risk” would be in the Reform manifesto. But what can’t be denied is the extent to which trans ideology is entrenched among activists of all parties. It’s not always easy to know whether MPs really believe what they’re saying, or whether they’re scared of a pile-on if they don’t go along with the orthodoxy. But the extent of the capture is causing alarm among dissidents in every party.

The Labour Women’s Declaration has described Labour MPs’ “scaremongering” about the Supreme Court ruling as “disappointing and deeply concerning”. In an article for the Telegraph at the weekend, former Green deputy leader Shahrar Ali lamented the “ideological insanity” of his party, pointing out that not one candidate for the upcoming leadership and deputy leadership contests is openly gender-critical.

In the three and a half months since the Supreme Court ruling, it has become apparent that many politicians and activists are simply refusing to accept it. They’ve misinterpreted the judgment, pretending that it’s either changed the law in this country or is merely just an opinion. Clearly, it’s not enough for party leaders to grit their teeth and say they accept the ruling. They need to put an end to all the excuses and face down the reality-deniers in their parties. Women are half the population, and we deserve better.

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Joan Smith is a novelist and columnist. She was previously Chair of the Mayor of London’s Violence Against Women and Girls Board, and is on the advisory group for Sex Matters. Her book Unfortunately, She Was A Nymphomaniac: A New History of Rome’s Imperial Women was published in November 2024.

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