Since the Supreme Court judgement in April, members of Rainbow Bedfordshire have been lobbying our local MPs to support trans, non-binary and intersex people’s rights, and urging the government to listen to trans+ voices when making policy that affects these communities.

Mohammad Yasin MP for Bedford and Kempston has been very supportive, writing to the Minister for Women and Equalities on our behalf.

Last week we were delighted when Mr Yasin invited us to join him to meet with Equalities Minister Olivia Bailey in Parliament. We asked the Minister questions about the EHRC guidance, the Equality Act and the forthcoming legislation on hate crimes and conversion therapies. Most importantly, we shared stories from our members of how the worsening atmosphere for trans+ people is affecting their lives.

We asked the Minister to:

• Take steps to protect trans people from the indirect effects of the Supreme Court ruling in services and employment;

• Reject the EHRC code of practice and require that any new Code of Practice ensures providers can lawfully include trans people in their services;

• Allow Parliament to debate any new Code of Practice and have a free vote on it, rather than passing it via negative procedure;

• Commit to consulting with trans organisations and experts on future guidance and legislative changes affecting trans+ communities, following the principle of ‘nothing about us without us‘.