Mumsnet battle Churchill's grandson over Caledonian Sleeper transgender policy

Users on the Mumsnet internet forum have clashed with Sir Winston Churchill's grandson over the rights of transgender people on the Caledonian sleeper.

Serco overtook operation of the service in April 2015. Picture: Contributed

The operator of the overnight rail service between London and Scotland decided that male passengers who identified as women would be able to use female-only compartments.

Mumsnet have argued this compromises the safety of women travelling on the trains.

The furore started after a response from operator Serco was shared on the site. It read: “Guests travel with the Caledonian Sleeper in shared accommodation for men-only or women-only; the service is provided on the basis of the gender that the individual self-identifies with.”

Chief executive Rupert Somes, whose grandfather was the great British wartime Prime Minister, has tried to quell the fury on social media.

He tweeted a response to one user, saying: “I think you are referring to the possibility that people may say that they are a woman when in fact they are a man – sigh.”

He also added that his staff were: “...attentive and watchful; all cabins have call buttons; if a single woman was uncomfortable with the other person they would be moved to another cabin.”

A Serco spokesman told the Daily Mail: “Everyone is greeted personally and shown to their cabin on the Caledonian Sleeper by our excellent and highly attentive staff.

“Anyone travelling can choose to book a cabin alone and the option to share with another person of the same sex is being phased out in autumn with the arrival of the new carriages.”