Rachel Taylor MP

We write as Labour women parliamentarians to urge the Government to remain steadfast in your pursuit of the much needed reform and modernisation of our justice system in the Courts and Tribunals Bill. We know from our personal experiences the ways in which our justice system is failing women and girls across this country. In particular, two failures stand out: First, the agonising and rising waiting lists in our courts, which mean that a woman reporting domestic abuse or coercive control today may be told her trial won’t come to court until 2030. That is intolerable. Second, the appallingly low conviction rates for rape and serious sexual violence. We know that many women report that they have felt that the process of going to trial was worse than the violation they suffered. Many say that, rather than being treated as a survivor, they were treated as if they were the ones accused of a crime. Against that backdrop, we welcome the Government’s landmark mission to halve violence against women and girls and your commitment to centre victims at the heart of a reformed justice system.

We welcome the Government’s investment in the justice system and the package of reforms, which builds on the important work of the Independent Review of Criminal Courts led by Sir Brian Leveson. Your commitment to doing whatever it takes to reduce the agonising wait times for justice is one which we share. At the same time, we want to see a less patriarchal justice system. Your announcement that the Government will change the law on ‘bad character’ evidence in rape and sexual violence cases in order to bust the pernicious rape myths which deny many women justice, is one which we applaud. Additionally, the pledge to repeal the presumption of parental contact in family cases, following the amazing campaign by Claire Throssell MBE, will be transformative for many women and their children. Our message as members of the women’s PLP is that these changes cannot come soon enough. Do not allow the Government to be blown off course. Too many women’s lives depend on it. Yours

Fleur Anderson MP Jess Asato MP Alex Baker MP Antonia Bance MP Johanna Baxter MP Sureena Brackenridge MP Julia Buckley MP Maureen Burke MP Irene Campbell MP Juliet Campbell MP Beccy Cooper MP Pam Cox MP Jen Craft MP Ashley Dalton MP Emily Darlington MP Anna Dixon MP Anneliese Dodds MP Maya Ellis MP Linsey Farnsworth MP Natalie Fleet MP Gill Furniss MP Allison Gardner MP Gill German MP Tracy Gilbert MP Mary Glindon MP Amanda Hack MP Alison Hume MP Lillian Jones MP Siobhain McDonagh MP Anneliese Midgely MP Margaret Mullane MP Samantha Niblett MP Jenny Riddell-Carpenter MP Michelle Scrogham MP Sarah Smith MP Elaine Stewart MP Rachel Taylor MP Jo White MP Yuan Yang MP

Here’s why I’m supporting the government’s justice reforms.

Disability and LGBT hate crimes set to become aggravated offences The proposed change has been set out in an amendment to the government's Crimes and Policing Bill.

I'm proud that an amendment I introduced to make hate crime an aggravated offence for LGBT+ and disabled people has been accepted by the government.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

'Vast majority' of parents should be involved if children question gender, schools told School leaders welcome the

I strongly welcome this guidance, which is clear and practical for teachers and parents, and puts the wellbeing and safety of children first.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

6/ Some in our media and our politics may want to steamroller their toxic, divisive agenda over the rest of us, but the law remains clear: what matters is equality and fair treatment for both women and trans people – not the triumph of one over the other.

5/ As some of us have said all along, this is not a clear-cut issue. The Supreme Court did not say that trans people should be pushed out of public life. It instead reaffirmed a duty to ensure everyone — women and trans people — can live freely and without discrimination.

4/ It was also ruled that aggressively challenging trans women using female facilities is harassment. Anti-trans campaigners' baseless claims that trans women pose a greater risk to women in changing areas or toilets than that posed by cis women were also rejected.

3/ This isn’t about who can shout their culture war opinions the loudest. The law has always been clear: it is not inherently unlawful for a trans woman to be permitted to use female facilities at work. Employers must think carefully about how they balance everyone’s rights.

2/ The former Chair of the EHRC can grind her axe in the press all she likes, but these rulings drive a coach and horses through her unworkable, unfair, and potentially unlawful guidance. They also show the Secretary of State is absolutely right to seek her own legal advice.

1/ You wouldn’t know it from the coverage, but two recent employment tribunal rulings have vindicated those of us who have said from the start that the Supreme Court judgment did not require the automatic exclusion of trans people from single-sex toilets and changing rooms. 🧵

Today is the anniversary of the repeal of Section 28 in England and Wales. Here's why the campaign to strike down that homophobic law was what first got me involved in politics 👇

It was fantastic to speak to BBC Midlands last night about my campaign to tackle serious organised freight crime.

20% of workers in our community work in freight and logistics, so I am proud to be standing up for this vital sector.

Lorry Crime Exposed An investigation into the criminal gangs targeting goods transported by lorry. Following companies set up by a dead man, pursuits by the police and the hunt for suspects.

8/ You can watch the full documentary on BBC iPlayer here: www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/epis...

7/ One victim said these crimes are devastating: “We’re not sleeping… one hit like this and you’re out of business.” That’s why we need a new crime code, more investment in security, and a national strategy, so we can put these shameless criminals behind bars where they belong.

6/ Police warn freight crime is becoming “more sophisticated, more organised.” Gangs slash truck curtains, raid depots, and steal entire trailers. Industry leaders say the sector is “under attack,” and rising theft will ultimately hit consumers’ wallets.

5/ The BBC uncovered a network of haulage firms purchased using the identity of a Romanian driver who had died months earlier. The deals were done by a man known as “Benny”, later identified as a completely different man, seen posing with a £150k Lamborghini on social media.

4/ One Midlands transport firm was tricked after hiring what looked like a genuine subcontractor. The lorry arrived, was loaded with £75k of goods… and vanished. Fake plates, disconnected numbers, no trace – just one example of how bold these criminals have become.

3/ As the documentary shows, criminal gangs are infiltrating the UK haulage industry by buying up transport firms – even using a dead man’s identity – to pose as legitimate truckers and steal goods by the lorryload. Freight theft has soared to £111m in the last year.

2/ 20% of my constituents work in freight, and the BBC have shone a light on what hauliers have been telling me for months: that hardcore organised criminality is undermining this essential industry and costing businesses and consumers millions.

Criminals buy haulage firms to steal lorryloads of goods, BBC finds These tactics and others, such as raids on lorries stopped in traffic, are driving a freight-crime surge.

1/ Last year I launched a campaign to tackle freight crime and call for a new crime code so the police can act. At first it felt like no one recognised the scale of the problem, so it’s brilliant to see BBC Midlands highlight it in a major new documentary. 🧵

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

My letter in the Guardian about why the Equality and Human Rights Commission's guidance on sex and gender is unworkable and goes far beyond what the Supreme Court judgement actually said.

Here’s why Labour members are backing
@bphillipsonmp.bsky.social for Deputy Leader ⬇️

Rachel Taylor MP drives ambulance 1500 miles to Ukraine Rachel Taylor, MP for North Warwickshire and Bedworth completes a mission to deliver aid to Ukraine

Rachel Taylor, MP for North Warwickshire and Bedworth drives ambulance 1500 miles to Ukraine

@racheltaylormp.bsky.social @centralbylines.co.uk

Farage called misogynist influencer Andrew Tate an "important voice for men" and wants to scrap the online safety law that protects children from extreme pornography and women from revenge porn. Reform have no plan to keep people safe online.

Yesterday I completed my 1,500 mile journey from the UK to the Ukrainian border, where we handed over the ambulance and all the supplies generously donated by the British public.

Day two of my 1,500 mile drive from North Warwickshire and Bedworth to deliver ambulances full of aid to Ukraine.

My statement on the Prime Minister's announcement that the UK will recognise a Palestinian state.

Yesterday I set off in the ambulance from North Warwickshire and Bedworth on my three day trip to deliver aid and supplies to Ukraine. Here's what happened.

From North Warwickshire and Bedworth to Ukraine. 1500 miles. 3 ambulances. Desperately needed supplies.

It was an honour to be asked to drive a retired ambulance full of aid across Europe to the Ukrainian border by local business LKQ Euro Car Parts, as part of their enormous fundraising appeal.

I am on TikTok!

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