Labour MP Rosie Duffield embroiled in transphobia row after cervical cancer tweet

MP locks her Twitter account following outcry
Labour MP Rosie Duffield. Picture: Chris McAndrew/UK Parliament/PA WireLabour MP Rosie Duffield. Picture: Chris McAndrew/UK Parliament/PA Wire
Labour MP Rosie Duffield. Picture: Chris McAndrew/UK Parliament/PA Wire

Labour MP Rosie Duffield has denied allegations that she is transphobic, after a row erupted following her comments about a cervical cancer campaign.

The debate started last night on Twitter after Ms Duffield commented on a CNN tweet about new American Cancer Society guidelines that state: “Individuals with a cervix are now recommended to start cervical cancers screening at 25 and continue through age 65, with HPV testing every five years.”

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She liked Piers Morgan’s reply ‘Do you mean women?’ After being flooded with complaints, Duffield added: “I’m a ‘transphobe’ for knowing that only women have a cervix….?!”

Duffield, the Canterbury MP who quit as party whip and resigned from the shadow front bench in May after it emerged she’d broken lockdown rules, had locked her Twitter account yesterday afternoon.She dismissed the allegations as “just this week’s tedious ‘Communist’ pile on…”

One user told Duffield she was “wrong” and linked to NHS guidance stating that “trans men with a cervix should have cervical screening to help prevent cervical cancer”, Duffield said: “Of course this applies to some people, they’ll know who they are and this advice is great.”

Duffield added: “But the implication that one cannot describe oneself as a woman without inviting a pile-on is beyond ridiculous.”

CORRECTION: The original version of this story reported that 'several people' were sharing a tweet from Ms Duffield in which she appeared to say “I can’t wait to get voted out”. This now appears to have been fake. We apologise unreservedly to Ms Duffield for the error and the confusion caused to our readers.