Magistrate reprimanded
Devon JP associated herself with views seen as transphobic
A magistrate has been reprimanded for serious misconduct after associating herself with views that may be considered transphobic. A reprimand is the most serious sanction short of removal from office.
The magistrate was named as Mrs Jane Taylor JP of the South and West Devon bench. No other identifying details were provided by the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office in a statement published yesterday.
The statement said a complaint was made to the regional advisory committee after Taylor had shared a YouTube video in a parish council WhatsApp group containing commentary that could be considered transphobic. When a member of the group expressed concern, Taylor replied that the video was about single-sex provision and did not concern transgender issues. She said she did not consider the video to be transphobic or to have used transphobic language.
Taylor told the advisory committee she had shared the video at the request of other councillors. She said the video was about the protection of single-sex spaces, which she was campaigning for in her capacity as a councillor, and not about transgender issues.
Taylor added that the video also contained the views of a third party which she could not comment on; but she maintained that her own views were not discriminatory. She described the complaint as politically motivated and said it was intended to suppress debate.
After an investigation, a nominated member of the magistrates’ advisory committee found that Taylor had associated herself with views that could cast doubt on her integrity and impartiality. The nominated committee member found she had shared the video without properly considering its impact, despite being aware of the video’s content.
In unapologetically defendending her decision to share the video, she had demonstrated a lack of due diligence and insight. The nominated committee member found that this amounted to serious misconduct and recommended that Mrs Taylor be issued with a reprimand.
Agreeing with the recommendation, Mr Justice Keehan, acting on behalf of the lady chief justice Baroness Carr and with the agreement of the lord chancellor David Lammy MP, issued Taylor with a reprimand for misconduct.
The BBC reported in May that Jane Taylor, a retired police chief inspector and independent member of Teignbridge District Council, had asked the council to clarify its position on single-sex spaces following the Supreme Court ruling in April that I referred to yesterday.