Government to Tell UK General Medical Council That ‘Women Are Women’

A House of Lords peer has questioned whether mothers would have confidence in a doctor ‘who thinks that men can have babies.’

Nurses changing their PPE on Ward 5, a COVID Red Ward, at the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley, Scotland, on Jan. 27, 2021. Jane Barlow/PA

The government will tell the General Medical Council (GMC) that “women are women” after it removed the words “mother” and “women” from its internal guidance for pregnant or menopausal staff.

In a House of Lords discussion on Tuesday, Labour peer Baroness Dianne Hayter of Kentish Town, questioned the GMC’s decision. She asked whether it reflects the GMC’s advice to doctors as to how to treat and describe patients.