Latest news with #MaryAnnStephenson
The Guardian
31-07-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Mary-Ann Stephenson confirmed as EHRC chair despite MPs' objections
Mary-Ann Stephenson has been confirmed as the new chair of the equalities watchdog, after the government overruled the objections of parliament's equalities committee over her suitability for the job. Stephenson, the chair of the Women's Budget Group, will take on the role at the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) in December. It includes responsibility for implementing guidance about transgender rights after the supreme court judgment on the definition of a woman. The women and equalities committee and the joint committee on human rights had together raised objections about the appointment, saying her experience was not sufficient in the area of protected characteristics such as race and disability. The committees, chaired by Sarah Owen and David Alton, had written to the equalities minister Bridget Phillipson saying: 'It is clear that Dr Stephenson has extensive academic credibility in the field of women's rights and has an important contribution to make to public life. 'However, it is with regret that we do not feel we can endorse her appointment to the role at this time. Our reasons relate to our concerns about vision and leadership, about breadth of expertise across the wide remit of the EHRC, and about rebuilding trust.' Stephenson was announced as the UK government's preferred candidate in June and gave evidence before the committees in July. Following her appointment, Stephenson said it was a 'great honour to be appointed as the new chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission at such a critical time'. 'I have spent over 30 years building my career across the equality and human rights sector and I am delighted to have the opportunity to bring my insight and experience to lead the EHRC with compassion, honesty and dedication,' she said. 'I look forward to working with the government and all stakeholders alongside my new colleagues at the EHRC to uphold equality and human rights and ensure that everyone is treated with respect and dignity.' Stephenson will replace Kishwer Falkner in the job of chair. The EHRC is drawing up an updated code of practice on how public bodies should react to April's court decision that 'woman' in the Equality Act refers only to a biological woman. Sign up to Headlines UK Get the day's headlines and highlights emailed direct to you every morning after newsletter promotion It is intended to set out to businesses and those running public spaces how the ruling affects single-sex spaces such as toilets and changing rooms, building on initial advice issued soon after the ruling. The guidance will attempt to navigate a path for how organisations can provide single-sex and gender-neutral spaces such as toilets, changing rooms and associations. In April, the EHRC released interim, non-statutory advice about how to interpret the ruling, which set out that transgender people should not be allowed to use toilets of the gender they live as. There are now attempts at a judicial review of the EHRC guidance by the Good Law Project and others.
Telegraph
01-07-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Labour's pick for equalities chair backs gender-critical feminists
Labour's choice to be the next chairman of the equalities watchdog has championed the right of women who oppose gender ideology to speak out. Dr Mary-Ann Stephenson said 'freedom of expression' was very important to her, as she spoke out against women being 'harassed or sacked from their jobs for peaceful expression of legally protected beliefs'. Appearing before MPs and peers, she criticised trans rights activists' attempts to 'no platform' women's rights groups as part of their 'attempts to close down debate'. Dr Stephenson, the director of the Women's Budget Group, is the Government's pick to lead the Equality and Human Rights Commission when Baroness Falkner, the incumbent, steps down later this year. 'Attempts to close down debate' But supporters of trans rights have criticised the choice, accusing her of having attended women's rights conferences at which gender-critical views were aired. On Tuesday she was challenged at a joint meeting of the Lords and Commons' equalities committees over her decision to sign a letter calling for open, non-violent discussion on gender issues, a letter which some activists have described as transphobic. 'They were about my opposition to practices of no platforming and attempts to close down debate,' she said. 'I started my professional career at Article 19 which is an international human rights organisation which focuses on freedom of expression. It's a really important value to me. 'I don't think freedom of expression should be an absolute value but it should be restricted in very limited circumstances, and I think that attempts to close down debate in any area is generally a mistake. 'To be honest I think that had we been able to have better dialogue on some of these issues 10 years ago we might be in a better position than we are in now.' Employment tribunal Dr Stephenson defended her decision to donate to a lawyer who was discriminated against at work for opposing trans self-ID. She also donated £25 to the legal fund of Allison Bailey, a barrister who took her chambers to court after they asked her to remove two gender-critical tweets. An employment tribunal found she had been discriminated against after clerks gave her less work to do. 'The donation was very specifically because I was upset at seeing women being harassed or sacked from their jobs for peaceful expression of legally protected beliefs,' she said. Dr Stephenson added: 'The debate has been so toxic that people just stepped away… so you end up with discussions taking place on social media.'
Telegraph
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Asylum seekers champion is Starmer's pick as new human rights chief
Sir Keir Starmer's pick to lead Britain's human rights watchdog is a Left-wing economist who championed asylum seekers and called for a wealth tax. On Thursday the Government named Dr Mary-Ann Stephenson as its 'preferred candidate' to lead the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), which enforces equality laws. She has previously taken a series of controversial positions, including support for a national wealth tax and a new system to increase the number of asylum seekers in Britain. As chairman of the Women's Budget Group, Dr Stephenson signed an open letter calling on Rachel Reeves to ensure the rich were 'taxed more on their assets' to fund net zero schemes. The EHRC is an independent body responsible for enforcing the Equality Act 2006, which makes it unlawful to discriminate against people based on sex, race, sexuality, disability or other protected characteristics. It will be responsible for releasing new guidance on how employers and businesses should interpret equality law after the Supreme Court ruling that the Equality Act's reference to 'sex' applied only to biological sex. 'Left-wing ideologue' Dr Stephenson was described on Thursday by Bridget Phillipson, the women and equalities minister, as 'exceptionally suited to leading the EHRC and ensuring it continues to uphold the equalities framework in this country'. But the Conservatives pointed to her history of Left-wing campaigning as a feminist economist. Mims Davies, the shadow equalities minister, said choosing Dr Stephenson to lead the body 'defies common sense'. She said: 'Replacing an esteemed and well-respected Chair, who stood up and fought for women's rights, with a left-wing ideologue who has demanded new taxes and open borders shows how out of touch this Labour government really is. 'The British public deserve a government focused on their priorities not more virtue signalling.' In April, Dr Stephenson wrote to the Treasury to complain about the 'gendered nature' of cuts to disability benefits, which she said would 'force women out of the workforce'. The same month, she signed a letter organised by the charity Together with Refugees, which said Sir Keir should abandon Labour's 'smash the gangs' policy in favour of more legal routes for asylum seekers travelling to the UK. The letter said: 'Rather than the border security summit's focus on expensive new ways to disrupt people smugglers, often making the journey more dangerous for refugees, the government should be looking at safe routes for refugees to get here without risking their lives.' It also called criticism of refugees a relic of 'hostile politics, racist rhetoric and demonising language of the past'. Open letter for wealth tax Dr Stephenson's political views will probably put her on a collision course with the Government, which has pledged to bring down net migration and explicitly ruled out a wealth tax. Last October, she joined campaigners in signing another open letter organised by Greenpeace, which called for Ms Reeves to 'introduce a new tax on assets for the super wealthy and ensure that the wealthiest individuals in our society contribute their fair share'. It said: 'This would reduce the stark inequalities in this country and help raise the vital funds needed to ensure that the transition to a greener, cleaner, more prosperous future is fair for everyone at home and abroad.' Dr Stephenson currently serves as director of the Women's Budget Group, which campaigns against economic policies that it views as anti-feminist. In April, its website published an article calling for the introduction of a four-day week, which the author said would 'promote gender equality'. The group also claimed Britain's public transport system was stacked against women because men took more train journeys. She previously worked as director of the Fawcett Society, the women's campaign group, and the Early Education and Childcare Coalition. Over 30 years experience Dr Stephenson will now face scrutiny by MPs on the women and equalities and human rights committees, and will replace Baroness Falkner as chair of the EHRC in November if she is appointed. Responding to the announcement that she is the Government's preferred candidate, she said: 'I am honoured to be named the Government's preferred candidate to be the new chair for the Equality and Human Rights Commission. 'The EHRC plays an integral role in protecting and advancing equalities and I am deeply committed to furthering this work as chair. 'With over 30 years working on equalities and human rights, I am confident that I will bring a breadth of experience and insight to the role.'
