Bex (she/they), a trans woman who used to be a member of the Liberal Democrats, has spoken to North West Bylines about why she left the party. Here is her story, as she told it to me, in her own words.
Statements from the Liberal Democrats are added below the main text.
When it comes to trans people, the Liberal Democrats (Lib Dems) are broken as a party. I have witnessed first hand a series of failures and broken promises since the UK Supreme Court ruling last year. This is not the party for me. This is not the party for trans people anymore.
Leadership isn’t listening to trans people
Let’s start with leadership. They just don’t listen to us.
Within a week of the Supreme Court ruling, I was invited to Portcullis House to meet with three senior Lib Dem MPs, including Lib Dem leader Ed Davey himself.
Being there with several other trans members of the Lib Dem party, we asked him to improve his comms and fast – no more mention of ‘women and trans people’ as if you cannot be both. If you say we have to accept the ruling, it is acceptance in the sense of ‘it has happened’, rather than ‘we agree with it’. As a party we are meant to change the law, not agree with it. In that room, Ed promised to listen and to act, he indicated he was furious with the EHRC and the response the government had taken. Indeed only a few years ago he stood up for trans women when asked if a woman can have a penis.
In the months following that meeting, I felt that it became clear that not only had Ed not listened, but the party’s structure was working against us in every way. Basic issues of human rights for trans people or disabled people became amendments we abstained from, the party only commented on trans rights in a short video in pride month. Ed was asked the ‘can a woman have a penis’ question when interviewed before the autumn conference, where he proceeded to refuse to answer, before he said he had never met a woman with one (I refuse to comment on the contents of my underwear, and can confirm that such contents were not on the agenda at our meeting in April). Meanwhile, in the weeks following, Zack Polanski answered the same question perfectly ‘yes – but it will take her a long time on the NHS to get rid of it’.
I met with Ed at Autumn Conference in Bournemouth, and I made it clear that he was not doing enough. His justification was that the only way to fight Reform UK was to follow the ‘rule of law’, and that meant accepting the verdict of the Supreme Court as fact. He allowed gender critical activists to remain in the party, after being questioned during a Q&A session the previous day. My confidence in him as a leader was lost from that day onwards.
Trans members are frequently promised support and the leadership team affirming our rights, but our most senior MPs, like Ed, keep trying to appease both sides during interviews etc., and then totally refuse to publicly speak about trans rights unless questioned, with more focus on more mundane policy areas.
Support in private, silence in public
This is where we get the ‘support in private, silence in public’ approach from. The idea is that by being agreeable centrists, we could win a majority of seats and then magically we would have a progressive utopia, including self-ID for the trans community. It feels like we are expected to just trust that this silent allyship will become public and translate into legislation under a Lib Dem majority government.
The party’s values in the Lib Dem constitution state support for liberties and freedoms of oppressed groups, yet trans people feel this is not held up. Passing any trans favourable policy is a real challenge. When Conference votes on trans rights I often witness over 90% support from members. Unfortunately the conference committee typically refuses these motions as they would be ‘too controversial for some members’. And the only real advocates we have in parliament tend to be the equalities spokespeople (currently Marie Goldman), but their allyship is rarely noticed by the community as it is a somewhat minor frontbench shadow role.
Anti-trans tactical voting?
I saw an opportunity for pulling the party in the right direction with the affiliated organisations of LGBT+ Lib Dems, and Lib Dem Women. I was already on the LGBT+ Lib Dem exec, but under a new chair it seemed our efficiency was slowing to a crawl.
A slow speed can be expected in a volunteer-led organisation, but we really needed to keep up the work we were doing due to the fast-developing situations we are facing as a community.
Back in December I received a call from the chair of Lib Dem Women, asking me to stand for their exec. I narrowly missed out on this opportunity due to what I felt to be anti-trans tactical voting. We were electing under Single Transferable Vote (STV) – the pro-trans vote was split somewhat evenly amongst several candidates, while the anti-trans vote was somehow) funnelled into three candidates who were elected very early during the count.
The final straw
This year’s spring conference was the final straw.
I had an altercation with a seemingly (to me) transphobic member who took objection to me staffing the Lib Dem Women (LDW) stall, which I had been given an exhibitor pass for.
This is not the first time a situation like this has arisen. Sometimes it seems like Liberal Voice for Women (LVfW) members target young, neurodivergent, or queer women, and ask antagonistic questions about their support for trans rights. It feels to me like they are very much the anti-trans wing of the party.
This confrontation has become the subject of an investigation by the conference stewards (they are investigating the other party, not me), but it also led me to realize that even LDW do not truly support us.
Their Chair, who had given me the pass and whom I saw as an ally, asked me to take the trans flag and ‘transphobia is not feminist’ banner off the stall.*
The day before, we had signed a cross-party letter condemning the violence used against Hannah Spencer MP on International Women’s Day. The exec held a formal vote to sign the letter, which passed, but caused friction between pro-trans and anti-trans exec members, so the decision was taken not to stretch our luck.
Furthermore, the chair and other senior execs were concerned a ‘transphobia is not feminist’ banner may result in attacks on X/twitter, as happened at a previous federal conference after JKR retweeted an image of an activist in front of the banner.
Brought me to tears
It was all too much! I abandoned the conference and rushed back to my accommodation. I burst into floods of tears and spent a large part of the weekend crying. I felt awful!
I did not return to the venue and only responded to messages from people I trusted the most. This mainly so I could report the incident to the stewards for formal investigation. Even though I was one of only two people ‘managing’ the LDW stall as an exhibitor, I did not continue this role in any capacity.
LDW was the last place in the party I felt could unashamedly support me, but they decided that there would be too much of a risk using any pro-trans material, and instead focused largely on WASPI women.
Everywhere in this party, I have to assimilate if I want to get anywhere. This is not support, at best it’s a begrudging tolerance of trans people like me.
Moving on to the Green Party
This is why I have decided to terminate my Lib Dem membership, after over six years of activism – during which I travelled anywhere from Devon to Shropshire to campaign in by-elections, delivered thousands of leaflets, spent endless hours in committee meetings, and visited Parliament more times in a year than most people do in a lifetime. After careful consideration, I have decided to join the Green Party of England and Wales, whose leadership actively promotes the very values the Lib Dems claimed to protect, without creating silent assurances and broken promises.
In the end, it wasn’t the one who failed in his duty to support and safeguard others who was forced out of the party. It was the victim.
Where is the justice in that?
The Liberal Democrat position is: “We believe that trans people are entitled to the same rights as everyone else, and that discrimination or harassment on the basis of someone’s gender identity constitutes a material disagreement with the fundamental values and objectives of the Party.”
Statement from Lucas North, Chair of LGBT+ Liberal Democrats, on behalf of LGBT+ Lib Dems:
LGBT+ Liberal Democrats remain committed to fighting for equality and dignity for all LGBT+ people, including trans people. We campaign for LGBT+ rights both within the Liberal Democrats and in society at large, and regularly engage with Lib Dem leadership and publicly elected members to help champion this work.
We are proud of the sustained, practical work being done across the party to advance trans rights, by members, volunteers and parliamentarians alike. That includes pushing policy, holding leadership to account, and supporting trans people in our communities.
We are proud of our Party’s recent calls to review and amend the Equality Act and Gender Recognition Act where necessary, to prevent it being used to protect discriminatory views. At a recent meeting between trans members and party leaders in York, there was a recognition from Party leadership that they need to be more vocal about this, and we look forward to working with our MPs and Council Leaders to make this happen.
The Liberal Democrats are clear: trans people deserve dignity, safety and equal rights. That is a core party value, and it is one we will continue to champion – publicly and consistently.
We will encourage the Party to do all it can to be bring people together, and to call out those who try to stoke division, and we have no hesitation in telling them if we think they could do more.
This is one person’s account, and it does not reflect the reality of the Liberal Democrats or the work of LGBT+ Liberal Democrats and Lib Dem Women.
We wish her well in her new party. Our focus remains on the work that matters – and we are getting on with it.Julia Cambridge, Chair Campaign for Gender Balance added:
The Liberal Democrats’ internal organisation, the Campaign for Gender Balance, is an inclusive body committed to supporting and empowering women in politics through training and mentoring. This commitment explicitly includes trans women, who are valued members of our community and participate fully in our work, including as trainers.
We are proud of our inclusive ethos and the diversity of those we support. We are clear in our values: transphobia has no place in our party or organisation, and we firmly reject it in all its forms.
* Comment on the issue with the stall from a LVfW spokesperson:
Regarding the LDW stand, the member of the LDW exec referred to did not object to the trans person staffing the stand. She objected to the trans flag being used as the tablecloth for the LDW stand. The LDW chair was alerted to the situation and decided to use a black tablecloth on the stand [as is customary]. There was a ‘Trans Rights Are Human Rights’ board still displayed on the LDW stand.
LibDem Women state on their website: “Together, we aim to fight gender discrimination, shape policy, support and provide a network for women in politics; ensuring no woman is left behind.”
A spokesperson for Liberal Democrat Women has said: “The safety and welfare of members is our number one priority, and where necessary we will take steps to protect members from potential harm. The last time the banner was used a member was photographed in front of it, triggering an onslaught of targeted transphobic abuse when it was shared by JK Rowling. We’re not prepared to take the same risk again and will do everything in our power to ensure conference remains a safe space for everyone.
“Liberal Democrat Women are absolutely committed to standing up against transphobia and will continue to champion dignity, safety and rights of all trans people. At this year’s conference the LDW team worked closely with LGBT+ Lib Dems, from handing out Trans rights stickers, to displaying placards in support of our Trans community. We maintain that this is the safest way to show our support and start conversations whilst considering welfare.”
“We all wish the author of the article the very best on the next steps in her political journey.”
LVfW state in their manifesto: “We, the undersigned, believe that there are two sexes, that humans cannot change sex and that sometimes sex matters in law and in life.” However their email to us states “Liberal Voice for Women are not anti-trans.”
LVfW statement on this article:
The Liberal Democrats are returning to our core Liberal values including freedom of belief and following the rule of law. For years, the Party listened to vocal trans activists and their interpretation of Equalities law, and it cost them dearly – including losing a high-profile legal case to Natalie Bird who was suspended after wearing a t-shirt with the definition of ‘woman’ on it.
The Lib Dems are moving to a less extreme position on the sex and gender debate with their acceptance of the Supreme Court ruling. This will inevitably mean the Lib Dem trans lobby – a group that is used to getting its way unquestioningly – will feel disgruntled as the Lib Dems re-align their policies with the actual law. The reality is the trans lobby were led to believe they had rights they never really had; the fault lies with those advisors who misrepresented the law.
The new Lib Dem President, Josh Babarinde MP was clear in his Spring Conference speech on diversity quotas that he will ensure the law is followed, and that means following the Supreme Court judgment that ‘sex’ in the Equality Act refers to biological sex. Trans people will always be welcome in the Liberal Democrats but the Party is going to get proper legal advice so it doesn’t unlawfully discriminate against other groups, including against members who believe sex matters.
Much of the time, biological sex doesn’t matter – taking out the bins for example. But when it does matter it really matters, particularly in prison policy, rape crisis centres, single sex hospital wards and care, changing facilities at work and at leisure centres. Our YouGov polling shows most grassroots members agree with us that women have the right to single-sex spaces.
Dr Zoe Hollowood – Chair of Liberal Voice for Women – a group within the Lib Dems campaigning for women’s sex-based rights.
Ed Davey MP did not respond to our request for a statement.
The Green Party states in their manifesto that they: “Campaign for the right of self-identification for trans and non-binary people.”
