The Good News Supplement: Monday 22nd April - Sunday 28th April

England’s Red Roses, Guinness 6 Nations & Grand Slam Champions

Another bumper edition bulging at the seams with good news stories from the gender beat this week. Enjoy!

You Take The High Road…

Of course, Holyrood has been the focus of our attention this week! The fun and games began with the ejection of Patrick Harvie, Lorna Slater and their jolly Green band of gender zealots from the Scottish government.

Scottish First Minister, Humza Yousaf, axed the Bute House Agreement, ending the coalition and slinging the Scottish Greens out of government. Couldn’t have happened to a more deserving bunch.

But keep a little of that schadenfreude in reserve. Following his ousting of the Greens, Yousaf then faced two votes of no confidence with the SNP a minority government.

The SNP holds 63 of the 129 Holyrood seats, two short of an overall majority. The Greens have seven seats, the Lib Dems have four seats, the Scottish Conservatives have 31 seats, Labour have 22, Alba have one and there is one MSP with no party affiliation. Quite deliciously, for a few days at least, Humza Yousaf’s political future, was in Ash Regan’s hands as she appeared to hold the deciding vote.

You will remember that courageous and principled Ash Regan resigned from the SNP front bench in October 2022 over Scotland’s Gender Recognition Reform Bill parliamentary vote. She then joined the Alba Party.

At the time, Humza Yousaf said of Ash Regan’s departure from the SNP that it was ‘no great loss’. Susan Dalgety wrote in The Scotsman, “As she holds the single vote that could save his un-glittering career and that of his ministers, he must be regretting his intemperate language”. Indeed he must have been!

Ash Regan wrote to Yousaf, making it clear that if he wanted her support, he had to commit to protecting the safety and dignity of women and children.

Then, only a few days later, Yousaf resigned as First Minister.

Delivering a statement at Bute House, Yousaf said, “While a route through this week’s motion of no confidence was absolutely possible, I am not willing to trade my values and principles or do deals with whomever simply for retaining power”. And he did it with a straight face, too.  

IMAGE CREDIT: The Famous Artist Birdy Rose

Karma really is a TERF.

Skipping The Double Dutch

There was wonderful news from The Netherlands this week; after a delay of two years, parliament has voted against the gender self-ID bill.

Huge congratulations to all the brilliant feminists and gender critical campaigners in The Netherlands who fought so hard to protect women’s sex based rights.

The Lady Is For Turning

Education Secretary, Gillian Keegan, has vowed to stop saying that ‘trans women are women’, and claims to have ‘learnt a huge amount’ since making that statement.

Four years ago Keegan told a Chichester LGBT+ forum that she believes ‘trans women are women’. This week she vowed not to use that phrase again and told The Telegraph, “Since becoming an MP and later a minister I have learnt a huge amount more about this complex and challenging subject… Having now spoken to experts and professionals, like many, my understanding has evolved. I have since been crystal clear about my concerns that women are being erased in this debate, and have always been clear that women do not have, nor have ever had, a penis.”

Meanwhile, on the other side of The House, Shadow Justice Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, expressed support for women with gender critical views and said she agrees with JK Rowling that “Biological sex is real and is immutable”.

Cleaning House at the NHS

Health Secretary, Victoria Atkins, is about to announce a series of changes to the NHS constitution aimed at erasing gender identity ideology from NHS hospitals.

This new constitution will focus on clear, sex-based language and see an end to female-erasing phrases such as ‘people with ovaries’ and ‘chest-feeding’.

It will also uphold privacy and safety for female patients with trans-identified males barred from women’s single sex wards. Patients will also have the right to request that intimate care is carried out by someone of the same sex.

Sex Matters CEO, Maya Forstater, said the changes represent a ‘major step’ towards ridding the NHS of its capitulation to harmful gender zealotry. She said, “These much-needed changes to the NHS constitution will help secure essential sex-based rights in healthcare across England”.

You’re Doing Fine, Oklahoma

Schools in the US state of Oklahoma have been told to ignore the new Title IX guidelines which shoe-horn trans-identified males into a law originally passed to tackle discrimination against women and girls.

State Schools Superintendent, Ryan Walters, sent a memo to Oklahoma school districts describing the recent changes to Title IX interpretation as ‘illegal and unconstitutional’ and stating that districts complying with them will be in danger of violating state and federal law.

Walters told television station KOCO that he has written to President Joe Biden and US Education Secretary, Miguel Cardona, to tell them that Oklahoma ‘will not comply’ with the extension of Title IX to trans-identified males.

“We want every human being to be treated with dignity and respect”, said Walters. “But we also have common-sense policies. We’re not going to allow a boy to go into the girls’ bathroom because they claim to identify as a girl that day… We’re not going to gut girls’ sports and allow boys to go beat girls in their own respective sports because of a gender ideology, so we’re going to continue to affirm truth and common sense in our schools.”

Bravo, Mr Walters!

Date For Your Diary

There are alternative and uncaptured Pride events for gay men and lesbians (the actual kind) being held in London on Saturday 29th June.

For more information etc, please see www.HumanGayMale.com and www.lcommunity.co.uk/reclaimed.

Glinner Down Under

Our Graham was still having a busy time on tour in Australia this week. On the Gold Coast he met paediatrician, Dr Dylan Wilson.

In Brisbane he held another brilliant comedy writing master class.

And hosted a wonderful book launch event talking about his memoir, Tough Crowd.

Then he headed to Perth for the final leg of the tour.

Don’t forget that Graham’s memoir, Tough Crowd, is still available from Amazon, The Express shop, Lightning Eye, Waterstones, Blackwells and all other discerning outlets. (There are also audio versions available on Audible and Spotify too.)

And Finally…