Reform MS reprimanded over offensive gender service comments

Emily Price 

A Reform MS has received an official reprimand from the Senedd’s Llywydd after making comments which were deemed offensive during a debate on Wales’ gender service.

Last week, Caerdydd Penarth MS Joe Martin called for the service to be shut down, branding the doctors working there “butchers” and “liars” and saying they should be jailed.

Plaid Cymru’s Chief Whip Heledd Fychan called on the Presiding Officer Huw Irranca-Davies to review Martin’s contribution and rule on whether his remarks breached the Senedd’s rules on discriminatory language.

Irranca-Davies reviewed the Reform MSs speech and concluded that his comments were “disorderly and offensive”.

In the Senedd on Tuesday (September 29), the Llywydd said: “My ruling is that the contribution made by Joe Martin MS to the short debate on the 23rd of September breached standing order 13.9 (5) as it constituted disorderly, discriminatory or offensive language, which detracts from the dignity of the Senedd.

“Now I want to make it clear that Members of the Senedd are entitled to hold and express strong and differing views.

“I will defend the rights of all Members to express their perspectives and to challenge that of other Members.

“It is the nature of parliamentary debate that Members will frequently disagree – and often in a robust manner.

“However, contributions must comply with the standing orders and the required standards of conduct in a parliamentary setting.

“They must be grounded in respect for others at all times.

“This ruling concerns the language used and the manner in which the contribution was expressed rather than the right to debate the subject matter.

“I have written to Joe Martin concerning my ruling and to require that he ensures that the language used meets the requirements of order and respect in future.”

Martin was not given the opportunity to respond to the ruling.

Reform UK said it accepted Irranca-Davies’ ruling but believed Martin’s remarks should be protected as “free speech”.

The Welsh Gender Service (WGS) is run by Cardiff and Vale health board.

It provides care and support for adults over the age of 18 experiencing gender dysphoria or looking to transition.

In August, the NHS Wales Joint Commissioning Committee paused all gender-affirming surgery referrals, assessments, and scheduled operations at the service while it conducted an independent clinical review amid concerns about whether patients were being “appropriately assessed” ahead of surgery.

Martin had shared a clip of his remarks to his Facebook page last week with the caption: “I argued in the Welsh Parliament that doctors who’ve performed surgeries on so-called ‘trans’ children should be imprisoned for medical malpractice.

“There’s no such thing as a trans child, only foolish and malevolent parents.”

During an interview with BBC Radio Wales yesterday he doubled down on his remarks, saying he was more than happy to say that “trans ideology is entirely reprehensible”.

When asked by the BBC if he understood that some people would find his comments “extremely offensive”, the Reform MS replied simply: “Yes”.

Martin later shared the clip to Facebook claiming the BBC had tried to “guilt” him into “going along with trans nonsense”.

This is not the first time the Reform shadow minister has found himself in hot water over comments he has made in the Chamber.

In June, he sparked a walkout by rival politicians and Welsh Government ministers during a debate on international spending.

Martin had cracked jokes about Welsh children being unable to read and claimed that nurses were signing up for universal credit because their jobs were being given to workers from India.

The Reform MS had been rebuked by the Senedd’s Llywydd the same morning for making derogatory remarks about Sudanese asylum seekers the day before.

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