Don’t let our party destroy women’s rights

50 years of sex discrimination law hang in the balance as Ed Davey and Marie Goldman call for the Equality Act to be opened up to scrutiny, and the meaning of “woman” in law to be called into question once again. 

If you already know the story you can jump straight in and sign our letter here. If not read on…

Since last year’s Supreme Court ruling on the meaning of sex in law, Liberal Democrat MPs have been calling for statutory guidance to enable organisations to apply the law in practice. This long-awaited guidance has now been published and those organisations have the tools they need to move forward with confidence. 

But Ed and Marie have responded by writing to the Minister for Women and Equalities, calling on the government to reject the code. Since then several Lib Dem MPs have also signed an Early Day Motion from a Labour MP calling for the guidance to be scrapped.

The letter also calls for the Equality Act itself to be subjected to post-legislative scrutiny. This is despite the 2024 Lib Dem General Election manifesto pledge to “uphold the Equality Act”. 

This is an extraordinary and radical move.

It appears the main intention is to dismantle the now well-established definition of sex in law. This is a definition which underpins women’s hard fought-for protection from discrimination, first codified in 1975 under the Sex Discrimination Act and consolidated into the Equality Act 2010. 

To open up our carefully crafted equality framework - just to appease a vocal minority of anti-women activists - would not just be to renege on an election commitment, but would also be an egregious assault on women’s rights. 

To do so at the time when there is every possibility that Nigel Farage could end up in Westminster is a huge risk to everyone’s equality protections, the thought of which should make us all shudder. 

The Equality Act, and women’s rights to single-sex spaces, services and associations, are worth defending. We hope you’ll join us in calling on our party leadership to drop this reckless posturing which puts all of that in danger. 

Sign our letter here. Please share in your Lib Dem networks if you can.