GuddleGrandma

@McookAli @Docstockk Your point is already addressed by her post. Some may be, other may not. Pregnant women are not exceptional, and vulnerability is not an excuse for behaviour. Many people who commit crime have some form of vulnerability. Best to deter and then assess case by case.

@Docstockk Disagree with you profoundly on this. Any woman who attempts to abort a pregnancy so late is by definition vulnerable. They should not be criminalised. It is still illegal to perform the abortion, all existing medical safeguards remain in place.

Interesting how some women who valiantly fought gender wars now using same tropes beloved of transactivists to defend decriminalisation of late term abortion. - AS IF there will be thousands of sinister men who want to predate in changing rooms/ women lining up to get rid of their babies! (there won't be, but still need legal deterrent for the few, especially with pills-by-post in the mix). - AS IF anyone would do that if they were not totally desperate/ in danger/ traumatised etc! (fact check: there are lots of different motivations, humans are diverse. Check out the stories of actual matricide! The idealisation of 50% of the population is stupid wherever you find it ). - It is MY RIGHT to do what I want to my body, regardless of consquences for others ( how is that not just abject narcissism and selfishness? We aren't living in the 18th Century. Every possible form of contraception was already available. How can it be ok to prefer to try and get rid of a later term baby - especially when you have to go through labour either way - rather than deliver it for adoption?). Starting to wonder where transactivists got this stuff from🧐

@roseveniceallan Women aren't a special creature without responsibilities. If a baby could live outside of the mother, and a woman takes action to kill it, it's morally reprehensible, and should be illegal. There is not special 'woman distress' that applies only in this case

Nobody should be criminalised for doing something to their own body. Even in tragic circumstances when a woman is heavily pregnant, her body belongs to her, not her unborn baby or the state. Late term DIY abortions are traumatic and any woman choosing that needs help, not prison.

@palomairving @DrCalumMiller @MoncktonR how politics is done, better quality politicians, better feedback loops from citizen's to politicians. The party system I agree really is just about the party.

@palomairving @DrCalumMiller @MoncktonR But we don't run the country by polls. We have people we vote for who make laws. I don't like all the laws they pass either - including this one, it makes me feel sick - but the last two referendums we had were very destructive. I think the best thing to do is to try to improve

Baroness Monckton is proposing a valiant amendment to REMOVE the abortion up to birth clause from this UK bill She is a heroine and a national treasure. Thank you @MoncktonR !

@palomairving @DrCalumMiller @MoncktonR I didn't say they were thick. We have people elected to be full-time lawmakers to make laws. Citizens assemblies are the most representative, literally representative of a county (more so than the proportion of people that voting even).

Calling voters too thick for a referendum on decriminalising abortion up to birth (slipped through after "46 mins" debate) while pushing citizens' assemblies is peak elitism. Polls show most Brits back the 24-week limit and oppose no-limits late-term – this deserves proper public say.

@palomairving @DrCalumMiller @MoncktonR The public are not equipped to vote on complex issues. We have representative democracy. It's not perfect but the public cannot put in the time and effort in to understand the complexities of designing law. Citizens assemblies could inform lawmakers, if they were inclined.

I'd genuinely like to understand why this Government (and Parliament more broadly) doesn't put such sensitive, conscience-driven topics to a public referendum or direct vote.Issues like the Assisted Dying Bill, proposals to restrict/remove jury trials in cases, and the decriminalisation of abortion up to birth raise profound ethical, moral, and societal questions. They touch on fundamental rights, the protection of the vulnerable, and long-standing legal principles.These matters are often described as 'free votes' or conscience issues, yet elected representatives operate under a party system where the whip can be removed — or other pressures applied — if they don't align with the party line. Even on deeply personal topics: party loyalty, career considerations, and limited debate time can heavily influence outcomes.Given how divided and strongly held public opinion is on these issues, a direct public consultation or referendum would provide broader legitimacy and accountability. Why leave decisions of this magnitude almost entirely to Parliamentarians who aren't truly free to vote their conscience?

@mgtmccartney The best Hospices have community care that combines specialist palliative nurses with access to palliative consultants alongside DNs, whilst also offering day services. Ideally there would be integrated services. Hospices mostly being charitably funded is appalling.

I completely agree HOWEVER the vast majority of excellent palliative care is provided not in hospices/ specialist services but in homes by amazing DISTRICT NURSES, the unsung sheros here. yet their numbers have been decimated and working arrangements trashed. RESTORE THE DNs.

@weeglesgapoet You don't believe in ... medicine? science? Because I bet you go to the doctor when you're sick right? It's the absolute same thing. Vaccinations have saved literally million of lives. Some of these conditions you really should be scared of. It's not a conspiracy.

Rinse and repeat, here we go again, Just follow the sheep in front, Queue up, mask on, roll up your sleeve, You bunch of fearful cunts….

@PaulineBathgate I don't want my taxes spent on more subsidies. Free childcare for the whole of primary and help to buy property? None of this is progressive, its just spraying cash everywhere. I would like to see a strong economy and the civil service get a massive overhaul to stop the waste.

Fantastic SNP conference yesterday with some big announcements. If the SNP win on May 7 we will: Expand childcare from 9 months→end of Primary Help 1st time buyers with deposits up to £10,000 Double # GP walk-in centres to 30 across the country The SNP is on Scotland’s side.

@Rkeleven2Rachel @sharrond62 Good for you. Every joint in my body ached before taking hrt, the pain went away almost overnight. HRT matches naturally produced hormones, the evidence speaks for itself.

@sharrond62 I'm also not sure too!I'm 56 never taken anything!! Changed my diet for sure, how I ate & times, reduced high impact training but synthetic meds have their side effects! Menopause is being portrayed as condition it's a transition just needs to be taken with care & consideration

Anyone woman still not thinking about HRT just listen to the actual stats of evidence based medicine, so missing in recent years.

@Charlie157874 @simonmaechling These were not scientific problems but social and political problems. Science can provide information, it can’t do the work for leaders

No one is arguing with you. But too many mistakes for science to be in a position to tell us things contrary to the truth. Where was science when corporations put toxic chemicals in children's snacks? Where was science on Cigarettes or Alcohol? Seems everyone went where the money was and the lies were told, and repeated. Good people make good science. Bad people make bad science and get paid and everyone loses trust.

Because of science: Water doesn’t kill you. Scratches aren’t fatal. Dentists stop pain fast. Food lasts through winter. 200 years ago? None of this was normal. Life expectancy doubled. Not luck. Science works.

@Bezbezbear @treesey @susannareid100 @edballs @RadioHumberside @GMB @BBCNews @TheGreenParty so what?! It means he’s lacking in intellectual capacity or he’s a grifter and doesn’t much mind whether what he promotes is true, both concerning for a politician. Which do you think it is?

@treesey @susannareid100 @edballs @RadioHumberside @GMB @BBCNews Really? So what? If your support lies with Tories, there’s 14 years of corruption to unpack; Labour, disastrous backpedaling on manifesto promises and Peter Mandelson; Reform, where to start?!? This really all you’ve got against @TheGreenParty ?!? Comical!!

Seems @susannareid100 and @edballs were right to ask Zack Polanski so many questions about his past life as a hypnotherapist in 2025, now the @RadioHumberside interview from 2013 has been unearthed Cc @GMB @BBCNews

@DavidGHFrost @denbypottery When was the last time you bought denby pottery? It’s not exactly a market in ascendency.

Britain's net zero national suicide pact is about to kill off another great British (and great Derbyshire) company. Denby Pottery @denbypottery goes into administration because of "soaring industrial energy costs" and of course "escalating costs of employment in the UK". itv.com/news/central/2…

@pennymarienz @ArtyMartyGiles It's easy for kiwis to deride the measures because NZ didn't actually experience covid. Hospitals & ambulances weren't overwhelmed, people didnt die at home before making it to hospital. No-one knows the counterfactual for NZ, but my guess is a lot of brown people would have died

The best way to explain what happened 6 years ago that we're still dealing with the fallout of... Thanks @ArtyMartyGiles for sharing this with me

@lnmackenzie1 @amoozeboosh @rob_marchant It was Deidre Brock. We spoke for about 10 minutes. She talked about everything but actual policy (doesn't come up, toxic discussion etc. etc.). She was with Vicky Nicolson (Councillor) who looked embarrassed.

@amoozeboosh @rob_marchant You say that, but... (this was widely believed to be Deidre Brock).

A thousand times this. The number of Labour colleagues who say "it never figures in top policy concerns"; *it doesn't matter.* Aside from the moral issue, this is about basic credibility: if you tell people black is white, or men are women, they will desert you at the ballot box.

@chinch69 @Ross___Mack @MartinSLewis @Ed_Miliband We need nuclear

@Ross___Mack @MartinSLewis @Ed_Miliband So do you think that we can rely 100% on an intermittent energy supply?

Just got off the phone after @Ed_Miliband called to discuss in detail the problems people are facing with domestic energy bills and heating oil. Here's what I fed through - your feedback would be useful... 1. HEATING OIL: This is the most immediate concern as many, often in rural areas or N. Ireland, are refuelling their tanks. Prices have rocketed, a few even suggest they've nearly doubled in a week. My biggest concerns are... a) Those who can't afford the new price b) Lack of specific regulation as heating oil isn't covered by Ofgem (though that's a longer-term issue) c) Some have anecdotally reported existing booked-in orders being cancelled, and being asked to rebook at much higher prices. I want to firm up whether this is widespread... I'd like to hear specific examples of how much prices are rising, especially of point c) and will pass them through to the Department for Energy. 2. CONSUMER GAS & ELECTRICITY BILLS: This is less imminent, but a potential ticking cost time-bomb. I'm focused on the Eng, Scot & Welsh system here... - In the short term: Most bills are protected from the spike in wholesale energy prices as the Energy Price Cap is set based on a significant time-lag. In fact it is locked in to DROP 6.7% in April. Those not on the Price Cap are mainly on existing fixes (which, due to unprecedented prior policy changes, will see most suppliers cut existing fix rates on 1 April, typically by 7% to 9%) so are also price protected for now. One current concern is the lack of availability of cheap fixes. While that's frustrating, in the short term it means those whose existing fixes are ending, will just (hopefully temporarily) need to move on to the Price Cap. There are also a minority of homes who are immediately affected, eg, those on time-of-use tariffs. These include Octopus Agile & Tracker, which move half-hourly or daily with wholesale rates. These are sophisticated user tariffs, and if necessary people have the short term option to switch back to a Price Cap tariff (though do check for restrictions on how long before you can switch back). So while none of that is great, it isn't crisis point. - The end of May is likely crunch time: This is usually when the next Price Cap (July to Sept) is announced. It currently seems very likely it will rise, though just how much all depends on how long lived the current energy price spike is. Yet the key is whether wholesale rates have dropped back down or not by that point. If they have, while the Price Cap rise will annoy many, it won't be critical for most for two reasons i) The July to Sept Price Cap is usually the lowest use period. So, even if typical use rose £200/yr, in practice this'd just be, at a guess, an extra £30 to £40 paid over the period. If by then wholesale rates are down, a substantial cut would be expected for the next (Oct) Cap. ii) The rate new fixes are set at is based on wholesale rates, so if wholesale rates have dropped by then, the big push should be to get people off the Price Cap and onto fixes which could possibly look to be 20%+ cheaper, avoiding any price hike. That should then leave only those unwilling or unable to switch paying more - the latter is an issue the govt would need to concern itself with at that point. Yet if rates haven't dropped back down by May, and it looks like it'll stay high so the October Price Cap will rise too, and no cheap fixes are available, then things get into real problem territory. The government needs to be (and I suspect is starting to) planning now for that eventuality in case more hard-core intervention is needed. Martin PS I said I'd be off socials for the weekend, as normal, but thought this was worth coming back on for. I'm now resuming my weekend break from socials.

We were delighted to welcome John Davidson to Scottish Gas Murrayfield yesterday! Excellent work on the trews, John 💙💛 #AsOne

@AlanG0210 @staylorish People in business who make decisions without relevant information don’t stay in business very long. SG don’t know the state of the asset, the cost to repair or if there is budget for it. That’s a terrible decision in any sector.

@staylorish It does not say cannot be justified. It sets out there are risks. Sometimes risks are worth taking in business. Time will tell.

Scot Gov yesterday snuck out a “written authority” for the purchase of Ardrossan Harbour. This is an exchange of letters in which a senior civil servant states that an action cannot be justified on value for money grounds, and a Scot Gov minister directs them to proceed anyway.

@otori_asuka @SomeCallMeLaz @FOWingsScot A lot of people are conservative. I don’t understand. You seem to use this as an insult?! There are women of all political leanings working together on this issue, but if your prejudiced against all conservatives I think you need to take some time to reflect

@SomeCallMeLaz @FOWingsScot The only people that share your "common sense" is right wingers my guy.

Sandie Peggie has just turned up at the Alloa Women's Festival and got a standing ovation before she's even got onto the panel!! 💚🤍💜

@TheatreSpoonie @KateBMwriting @ThomasWillett9 This must be a reflection of who you follow on X or other platforms, because I see plenty of women pushing back on modern forms misogyny, this being one

@KateBMwriting @ThomasWillett9 If women are sick of this, why is the push back mostly from homophobic straight men?

The Dublin Zoo drag moral panic is INSANE. No one is forcing you to attend. It’s a drag act that poses no threat to anyone. The entire faux outrage is steeped in homophobia and transphobia. This new age of pearl clutching over anything remotely queer is pathetic.