Civil servant censored for highlighting ‘both sides’ of trans debate

A civil servant was disciplined for encouraging colleagues to listen to both sides of the transgender debate, it has been reported.

During a 2021 International Women’s Day event called “What trans is and some of the issues faced”, staff at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) were urged to submit written questions to an online chat.

But a civil servant received an official warning, after a Whitehall investigator claimed they made a series of “inappropriate comments relating to trans women”, including: “I think it’s useful to hear both sides of a subject”.

‘Shocking’

According to The Daily Telegraph, the investigator argued that the employee breached the DWP’s behaviour and harassment policy because the “event did not appear to be a forum designed to generate debate on both sides of the subject”.

In addition, the investigator accused them of excluding “trans women from the relevance of International Women’s Day” because they said the global day should “centre” on women.

Writing on X, formerly known as Twitter, Maya Forstater called the incident “shocking”, saying: “Civil service need to train managers NOW to prevent this happening again”.

‘Nazi’

Last year, civil servants who uphold the reality of biological sex were reportedly likened to Nazis by some pro-trans colleagues.

An official told The Daily Telegraph that during an online meeting between diversity networks in the Ministry of Justice, several accusations were made against members of the Sex Equality and Equity Network (SEEN). One official branded a recent SEEN event “incredibly damaging and upsetting”.

The cross-government network is committed to protecting the belief that “biological sex is binary and immutable” and that “biological sex matters for both women and men in our everyday lives”.