The founder of Mumsnet said she feared the site might not survive after they were branded ‘bigots’ and blacklisted by big business for standing up for women’s rights.
Justine Roberts singled out Barclays and Ocado, who she claimed had refused to advertise or partner with the popular online forum when they called for the Government to clarify the definition of ‘a woman’ under equality legislation.
In a statement posted on Mumsnet in the wake of Wednesday’s Supreme Court ruling, Ms Roberts said she felt under intense ‘pressure’ from activists because of their stance, but stressed that ‘even in the darkest moments’ she refused to ban discussion on the issue, saying that would have been ‘contrary to what Mumsnet is about.’
Ms Roberts wrote: ‘It’s been severely testing at times – there were moments I genuinely thought we might never see the tide turn, or at least not in our generation…Mumsnet risked being permanently labelled as bigoted, vicious, and ‘on the wrong side of history’.
‘A fair number of organisations pulled their advertising under pressure from activists – both internal and external. I’m sure there were many more we never heard from who simply steered clear.
Commercial partnerships became noticeably harder to secure. The low point was discovering we’d been blacklisted on instruction from the top brass at Barclays – just weeks before their CEO resigned over concealing ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
‘When we included a call to clarify the definition of sex in the Equality Act in our 2024 Mumsnet Manifesto, Ocado – who had been excited about a partnership – abruptly pulled out, citing Mumsnet’s ‘hateful political views’.
Despite repeated attempts to explain our position – as a platform committed to amplifying women’s voices – they’ve refused to speak to us ever since.
Founder of Mumsnet Justine Roberts (pictured) claimed she feared the site ‘would not survive’ after she stood up for women’s rights to access single-sex spaces
She claimed companies such as Barclays and Ocado refused to advertise or partner with the popular online forum when they called for the Government to clarify the definition of ‘a woman’
When asked about Ms Roberts’ statement, a spokesman for Ocado said they apologised ‘unreservedly’ to Mumsnet
For Women Scotland directors Susan Smith (left) and Marion Calder (right) celebrate the landmark ruling on April 16
The Supreme Court announced that the definition of a woman is based on biological sex in a landmark ruling. Pictured: Campaign group For Women Scotland celebrating the judgement
‘Nonetheless, even in the darkest moments, when I feared the site might not survive, we never considered banning discussion of this issue altogether. That would have been completely contrary to what Mumsnet is about: a space for mothers to talk about what matters to them.’
Under the landmark judgement, from the UK’s highest court, transgender women are no longer legally women, meaning they will not be allowed to take part in women’s sport or be on single-sex hospital wards.
Changing rooms must also ‘be based on biological sex’ and Baroness Kishwer Falkner, chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), has already pledged to pursue organisations that fail to enforce women-only spaces.
Despite the ruling’s unambiguous language, many large businesses and organisations have said they will not immediately be changing their policies for transgender individuals, at least not until they have received legal advice on its implications.
Yesterday Andrew Walton, chief corporate affairs director of Lloyds, Britain’s biggest bank, wrote to staff and pledged to ‘stand by’ its transgender employees, who he said would be ‘unsettled’ by the Supreme Court’s ruling.
‘Please know that we cherish and celebrate you and remain committed to inclusivity,’ he said.
Refuge, the charity established for female survivors of abuse, also said it would not be changing the way it operates, while the Girl Guides said they would be monitoring the situation and ‘awaiting guidance’ from the EHRC.
In their manifesto ahead of last year’s General Election, Mumsnet called on the new Government to ‘amend the Equality Act to make it clear that ‘sex’ refers to biological sex thus protecting women’s right to access female-only spaces such as hospital wards, changing rooms and refuges.’
The judgement was celebrated by women’s rights groups who opened a bottle of champagne. Pictured: Susan Smith (centre left), Marion Calder (centre right) and Helen Joyce (right)
Lord Hodge said that five Supreme Court justices had unanimously decided that ‘the terms woman and sex in the Equality Act refer to a ‘biological woman and biological sex’
Campaigners Helen Joyce (left) and Maya Forstater of Sex Matters smiles outside court after the landmark ruling on Wednesday
The Scottish government argued that such people are entitled to sex-based protections, while campaign group FWS claimed they only apply to people that are born female
Ms Roberts congratulated ‘everyone’ on Mumsnet ‘who played a part in securing…much-needed clarity’ in the legislation in her post.
She added: ‘As ever we’re in awe of the intelligence, tenacity and resilience of Mumsnet users.’
Asked about Ms Roberts’ statement, a spokesman for Ocado said they apologised ‘unreservedly’ to Mumsnet.
‘These comments are not representative of us as a company, and we believe they were made by a temporary contractor who is no longer with the business,’ he said.
Barclays was contacted for comment.
The ruling followed a seven-year legal battle by gender-critical group For Women Scotland and was backed by campaigners including Olympic swimmer Sharron Davies and Harry Potter author JK Rowling.
