27/04/2022
Pink News reports that Sports Minister, Nadine Dorries, who is already under scrutiny after apparently comparing homosexuality with paedophilia, has said that it is not possible for transwomen to compete in women’s sports after they have gone through puberty. Dorries argued that transwomen were still biologically male and that they would have an advantage over cisgender women. Pink News notes that Dorries has no qualifications in science or endocrinology and quotes the Mermaids Support Group as pointing out “To even be considered eligible to compete at an elite level, female trans athletes must undergo hormone therapy and rigorous testing for at least a year prior to training and competing.” Dorries was speaking on the right wing scandal channel GB News, whose national audience has recently been revealed as desultory, lagging behind even specialist TV stations like the small Welsh Channel S4C. Crucially, more conciliatory remarks made by Ms Dorries were edited out of the hateful channel’s newsfeed. But LGBTQIA advocates did note that Dorries had originally stated “You can choose your gender and we will support you and help you to do that, we will give you all the love and compassion and support you need to get to that place”
