Latest news with #2024MumsnetManifesto
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ocado apologises to Mumsnet after it said forum had ‘hateful political views'
Ocado has apologised to Mumsnet after pulling out from a partnership 'citing Mumsnet's 'hateful political views'' because the forum included a call to clarify the definition of sex in the Equality Act in its 2024 manifesto. It follows the judgment by the Supreme Court on Wednesday, that the definition of a woman in equality law is based on biological sex, meaning transgender women with a gender recognition certificate (GRC) can be excluded from single-sex spaces if 'proportionate'. Mumsnet's chief executive Justine Roberts posted on the site after the ruling congratulating everyone on the website who 'played a part in securing what I think most would agree is much-needed clarity in the Equality Act'. She said that previously a 'fair number of organisations pulled their advertising under pressure from activists'. And she added that Ocado 'pulled out' of a partnership after the website included a call to clarify the definition of sex in the Equality Act in its 2024 Mumsnet Manifesto, then 'refused to speak to us ever since'. Ms Roberts said: 'When we included a call to clarify the definition of sex in the Equality Act in our 2024 Mumsnet Manifesto, Ocado, who had been excited about a partnership, abruptly pulled out, citing Mumsnet's 'hateful political views'. 'Despite repeated attempts to explain our position – as a platform committed to amplifying women's voices – they've refused to speak to us ever since.' Feminist campaigner and writer Julie Bindel, the co-founder of the law reform group Justice for Women, posted on X about potentially boycotting Ocado after 'the Mumsnet thing' and Ocado replied on X saying: 'These comments are not representative of us as a company, and we believe they were made by a temporary contractor who is no longer with the business. 'We apologise unreservedly to Mumsnet.'
Telegraph
18-04-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Trans boycott nearly put us out of business, says Mumsnet founder
The founder of Mumsnet has said she feared it would be destroyed by trans activists after she stood up for women's rights. Commenting in the wake of a landmark Supreme Court ruling that found trans women were not legally women under equalities law, Justine Roberts said the website was at risk after advertisers refused to work with it owing to pressure from pro-trans campaigners. In a post on the site, which is Britain's largest forum for parents, with nine million users, Ms Roberts said: 'It's been severely testing at times – there were moments I genuinely thought we might never see the tide turn, or at least not in our generation… 'Mumsnet risked being permanently labelled as bigoted, vicious, and 'on the wrong side of history'.' It comes amid a backlash at political and corporate supporters of the trans agenda, many of whom have remained silent since the judgment was handed down on Wednesday. JK Rowling, the Harry Potter author and leading gender critical campaigner, called on Sir Keir Starmer to issue his first public comments on the decision, saying that many women are waiting to hear the Prime Minister's views on the Supreme Court ruling' in a post on X. Mumsnet was targeted by campaigners as long ago as 2018, when it refused to ban discussion of trans topics. Ms Roberts said: 'A fair number of organisations pulled their advertising under pressure from activists – both internal and external. I'm sure there were many more we never heard from who simply steered clear. 'Commercial partnerships became noticeably harder to secure. The low point was discovering we'd been blacklisted on instruction from the top brass at Barclays – just weeks before their CEO resigned over concealing ties to Jeffrey Epstein. 'When we included a call to clarify the definition of sex in the Equality Act in our 2024 Mumsnet Manifesto, Ocado – who had been excited about a partnership – abruptly pulled out, citing Mumsnet's 'hateful political views'. 'Nonetheless, even in the darkest moments, when I feared the site might not survive, we never considered banning discussion of this issue altogether. That would have been completely contrary to what Mumsnet is about: a space for mothers to talk about what matters to them.' The Supreme Court ruling means that trans women are not entitled to access women's-only spaces such as lavatories or hospital wards. Public bodies are scrambling to tear up existing guidance as a result, with the Equalities and Human Rights Commission expected to issue new advice that could include telling organisations to install new unisex toilets for trans people. Businesses are also expected to adopt new guidance as a result, although some have publicly focused on expressions of support for their trans workers. Executives at Lloyds, Britain's biggest bank, pledged 'solidarity' with staff. Sir Keir is personally under pressure to comment on the issue, having once said that 99.9 per cent of women don't have a penis. He has since said that he believes there is a distinction between sex and gender. Ms Rowling said: 'Many women are waiting to hear the Prime Minister's views on the Supreme Court ruling. 'After all, he's the man who decreed: 'A woman is a female adult, and in addition to that trans women are women, and that is not just my view, that is actually the law.'' When he was first elected Labour leader, Sir Keir said the party stood 'proudly with the trans community'. The next year, he committed to updating the Gender Recognition Act to introduce self-ID for trans people. He went on to give a string of controversial responses to questions on biology, insisting it was 'not right' to say only women have a cervix and repeatedly refusing to say whether a woman could have a penis. In 2022, he said 'trans women are women' and claimed 'that is actually the law', citing the Equality Act. He later backtracked on the self-ID plans, defining a woman as an 'adult female' in 2023. The next year, shortly before being elected Prime Minister, he acknowledged 'there's a distinction between sex and gender'. After the Supreme Court ruling on Wednesday, a Labour source said Sir Keir had brought the party to a 'common sense position' on the subject from an 'activist' stance. A government spokesman said at the time: 'We have always supported the protection of single-sex spaces based on biological sex. Single-sex spaces are protected in law and will always be protected by this Government.' Labour Women's Declaration, a gender-critical group, called on Sir Keir to take concrete action to ensure the judgment was fully reflected in all public sector guidance. It said: 'The Government now needs to instruct all Government departments to bring their policies, training and guidance into line with the judgment. 'The 'clarity and confidence' the ruling brings must also be applied to all positive action initiatives and associations for women within the Labour Party, such as women's branches and committees.'
The Independent
18-04-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Ocado apologises to Mumsnet after it said forum had ‘hateful political views'
Ocado has apologised to Mumsnet after pulling out from a partnership 'citing Mumsnet's 'hateful political views'' because the forum included a call to clarify the definition of sex in the Equality Act in its 2024 manifesto. It follows the judgment by the Supreme Court on Wednesday, that the definition of a woman in equality law is based on biological sex, meaning transgender women with a gender recognition certificate (GRC) can be excluded from single-sex spaces if 'proportionate'. Mumsnet's chief executive Justine Roberts posted on the site after the ruling congratulating everyone on the website who 'played a part in securing what I think most would agree is much-needed clarity in the Equality Act'. She said that previously a 'fair number of organisations pulled their advertising under pressure from activists'. And she added that Ocado 'pulled out' of a partnership after the website included a call to clarify the definition of sex in the Equality Act in its 2024 Mumsnet Manifesto, then 'refused to speak to us ever since'. Ms Roberts said: 'When we included a call to clarify the definition of sex in the Equality Act in our 2024 Mumsnet Manifesto, Ocado, who had been excited about a partnership, abruptly pulled out, citing Mumsnet's 'hateful political views'. 'Despite repeated attempts to explain our position – as a platform committed to amplifying women's voices – they've refused to speak to us ever since.' Feminist campaigner and writer Julie Bindel, the co-founder of the law reform group Justice for Women, posted on X about potentially boycotting Ocado after 'the Mumsnet thing' and Ocado replied on X saying: 'These comments are not representative of us as a company, and we believe they were made by a temporary contractor who is no longer with the business. 'We apologise unreservedly to Mumsnet.'
