francesryan.bsky.social
Guardian columnist and journalist. Commentator of the Year 2024. Author of Who Wants Normal? and Crippled.
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You’re severely misunderstood what I said.
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A recent report by the child sexual exploitation taskforce suggested that a higher proportion of perpetrators of all forms of child sexual abuse are white. Let’s wait for Reform, Elon Musk, the Tories and Tommy Robinson to all decry these men and order an inquiry into their crimes.
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Every young girl abused by these gangs deserves justice and that includes the state-led failures: from the police to social workers who dismissed working class children as “prostitutes”. But the hard right should not be allowed to control the narrative or distract from the need for criminal justice.
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I would say very much no - but I think every society is affected in some way by the global turn of misinformation and authoritarianism and we all have to be vigilant of the fact progress needs protecting.
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It’s a bit of a quirk. It is technically legal if
two conditions (-24 weeks and 2 doctors) are met but because the Victorian law stands and the 60s law had those two conditions, it was never fully decriminalised.
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Haha I thought this the other day! They’ve stolen a perfectly good word.
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The U.K. can’t complain looking at the US - we have great (free at the point of need) access to abortion and robust rights - but yes, even if it’s just a handful of women affected, it’s too many and worrying that the police/prosecutors are getting more involved.
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The column is about a law specifically in England and Wales. There is also a paragraph that widens it out to wider global abortion rights. So not really sure what you’re saying tbh!
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It’s in the name of not inadvertently locking up women who have had a stillbirth or (the minuscule number who have) made a desperate decision to have a late abortion due to, say, being sex trafficked.
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You might want to read the column…
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Campaigners say women are routinely put under a police investigation that comes to nothing – the majority of them have in fact naturally given birth prematurely or had stillbirths. Those who have had a late abortion are often abuse victims. Thanks to @bpas.bsky.social for talking to me.
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The urge for decriminalisation has increased as the risk of arrest has. It is estimated that more than 100 women have been prosecuted for a suspected abortion over the last decade. Since December 2022 alone, seven women have been charged. One woman has been jailed.
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Now that may change. This week, a Labour backbencher will table an amendment to remove abortion from criminal law in England and Wales. It would mean women will no longer face prosecution if they end a pregnancy after 24 weeks or without approval from two doctors.
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The law that’s largely used to prosecute women for a suspected illegal abortion was written in 1861 – that’s before women had the right to vote or own property independently. While the Abortion Act in 1967 gave widespread access to abortion, it was never made fully legal on the statute books.
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Thanks so much!
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I don’t often get chronic illness FOMO but I am gutted I didn’t get to do the photoshoot I’d have undoubtedly been mortified through. Imagine me dressed in Miu Miu, sitting awkwardly next to Amal Clooney.
Online here and on newsstands 17th June: www.vogue.co.uk/article/the-...
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My new book, Who Wants Normal?, actually looks at this extensively. Including similar stats!
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Final point: If you see briefings like this in the coming days and maybe think “I’ve heard this before”, remember that Kendall is not trying to inform the worried public - she’s trying to woo rebellious backbencher. That’s what the next few weeks are about for ministers.
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As ever, I appreciate how speculation is bloody useless for many people’s mental health. But - if you want to read it - this is the latest. If not, come back next week when the bill is published. That will be the first time the facts are established. No matter what any click bait suggests…
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This comes at the same time as Rachel Reeves has said she won’t U-turn on the cuts. Make of that what you will! We also have an update on timing: the Welfare Reform bill is now due to be published next week, with the vote likely to be first week in July at the latest.
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I can’t be your personal source(!) but I will say you’ve only found a small bit of the policy. The big part is tightening eligibility that will see up to 1 million lose benefits. I didn’t misrepresent anything - you are choosing not to believe facts/aren’t researching properly. Good luck!
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I’m sure you understand I can’t spend my time personally finding you sources. This story has been on the front pages for months. You can find it on both the government website and multiple news sources. Everything I write is backed up by think tank reports. My timeline has one from a few days ago…
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You can click on my Guardian byline and see several news articles and columns I’ve written on the announcements.
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From several months ago. To be voted on in a few weeks.
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I’m off work at the moment so play along with The Guardian’s live blog for Spending Review analysis as the day goes on. As ever, “affordable housing” pledges need unpicking. Safe to say, though, this is the biggest boost to housing for decades (not much competition, granted).
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I mean, I love criticising Starmer’s Labour as much as the next person but - as the above says - it’s part of £1bn funding for homelessness services as well as the £39bn for social and affordable housing.
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That’s lovely, thank you!
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Late June probably but not confirmed yet.
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You can see the full toolkit from @turn2us.org.uk here: www.turn2us.org.uk/about-us/new...
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I’ve seen the research but not the figure. I’m off sick at the moment but will dig again when back at it, thanks.
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It goes without saying we’ll have to see the details of the SEND aspect before celebrating. Disabled children need a legal right to support and a choice, and the SEND system is a vast mess that won’t be fixed overnight. But it’s a Sunday and I’m going to take this as a bit of hope, as a treat.
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Kids who need a specialist school should of course have one but many who could be in mainstream ed are currently segregated into special needs private schools because of a lack of state funding for teaching assistants etc. These schools are often miles away so disabled kids also have long commutes.