Jenny Lindsay

Jenny Lindsay reflects on her rebellious adolescence, truancy, impulsiveness and eventual departure from Ayrshire, contrasting her experience with Bella Ramsey’s more sheltered teenage years. Reconnecting with former classmates highlights the devastating consequences that addiction, crime and early death can have, while a reunion with fellow Ayrshire returners suggests that ordinary domestic life, sobriety and renewed community ties can themselves feel meaningful and even rebellious.

Jenny Lindsay argues that Nicola Sturgeon demanded unwavering loyalty while in charge of the SNP but has shown little loyalty to former colleagues since leaving office. The column focuses on Sturgeon's new foreword to her memoir, in which she criticizes John Swinney's leadership and the SNP's softened environmental policies, and accuses her of damaging the party through public attacks on potential successors and former allies. It also condemns Sturgeon's record on gender self-identification, her treatment of Joanna Cherry and JK Rowling, and her failure to acknowledge responsibility for problems associated with her leadership, concluding that her overriding loyalty is to her own image and political legacy.

Amnesty International is criticised for adopting gender‑identity positions the writer argues distort reality and unfairly label women’s and LGB organisations as anti‑rights, prompting legal action from JK Rowling and an inquiry by the Charity Commission. The piece highlights a series of recent legal wins for gender‑critical campaigners, including court rulings affirming protections for gender‑critical beliefs. The Scottish Human Rights Council faces a discrimination lawsuit from Claire Methven O’Brien over alleged suppression of her views during the Gender Recognition Reform Bill process. Additional taxpayer‑funded groups, including Engender and the Equality Network, are accused of lacking transparency and promoting unlawful positions. The article argues that institutional adherence to gender‑identity ideology has caused significant harm and that accountability is now necessary.

Online reactions to Ann Widdecombe’s death sparked intense criticism from Jenny Lindsay, who highlights the surge of vitriol directed at the former MP, particularly from left‑wing and trans‑activist circles. Several public figures deleted or apologised for their remarks after it emerged Widdecombe had been murdered. Lindsay argues that such responses reveal a broader decline in civility, intensified by misogyny and double standards applied to women in public life. She urges a return to basic decency, emphasising that personal attacks after someone’s death serve no moral or political purpose.

Andy Burnham is urged to avoid the leadership pitfalls that undermined Nicola Sturgeon, particularly her handling of gender‑identity policies and her overreliance on loyalist support. The article argues that the political risks associated with gender policy remain severe, citing controversies such as housing male offenders in women’s prisons and the proposed puberty‑blocking Pathways Trial. Labour’s internal divisions on these issues are highlighted, including the isolation of MPs like Rosie Duffield who opposed gender‑identity measures. With a draft conversion therapy ban emerging and pressure from supporters of identity‑based policies, Burnham is portrayed as needing a clear and consistent stance to maintain credibility and provide effective leadership as he positions himself for national office.