The General Election, 1997
How did you vote in the election?
Does your new MP understand the issues confronting transsexual people?
Will they support legislation on your behalf?
"Of all the days to announce his sex change, he has to choose today!" (Daily Mail cartoon Thursday May 2nd, 1996) |
Press for Change wants parliament to legislate to give transsexual people equal citizenship, with the same rights and liberties as other people. This means:
- equal status for couples where one or both partners is transsexual
- equal status for transsexual parents
- equal protection from discrimination
- equality under criminal law
- equal rights to privacy
Where do the parties stand?
The only party which has actually made a commitment to legislate in favour of transsexual people is the Liberal Democrats. Despite personal support for legislation from many Labour and Conservative MPs, neither party has been prepared to commit itself in the past. There is therefore still a lot of work to be done in this area.
The record of the Conservative party in office was very poor indeed. It fought tooth and nail against test cases brought by transsexual people in the British and European Courts and it reneged on its promise to review our situation following Alex Carlile’s Private Member’s Bill.
Whilst there is no guarantee, there are some indications that we might be treated more sympathetically by the new Labour government. The Labour Party conference has voted fairly consistently in support of lesbian and gay rights, opposed Section 28, and voted (on a free vote) by 97 to 8 to lift the ban on gays in the military. The vast majority of signatories to Lynn Jones’ Early Day Motion no.302 in the last Parliament were Labour MPs. The draft Labour manifesto also included a commitment "to end unjustifiable discrimination wherever it exists".
What can we do?
We need to ensure that all new MPs are aware of the issues and the level of public concern about tranagendered people’s civil rights. Visit your MP and ask your friends, families and supporters to do so too.
Press all MPs to clarify the position of their party and to write on your behalf to the appropriate ministers or shadow ministers seeking a clarification of what their policy is.
Press for Change is already organising to lobby all newly elected MPs, to educate them about the issues involved and to press for their support. YOU can consolidate this effort in your own constituency by writing or making a personal visit. (By convention MPs can only act on behalf of their own constituents. We can prepare the ground nationally, therefore, but it needs YOUR effort to get questions asked and policy committments made).
Very soon we’ll be publishing consituency lists and resources to help you lobby more effectively. Watch out for the new feature on this web site, coming shortly.