UK doctor: 6ft tall bearded man is not madam. Court: You are fired
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Topics: DOCTOR MAN MADAM UK COURT
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"Staff in the NHS, even those who do not share my Christian convictions, are also disturbed"
Dr. David Mackereth claimed he was sacked after saying he would not “call any 6ft tall bearded man madam†during an “abstract discussion†with his manager.
"No doctor, or researcher, or philosopher, can demonstrate or prove that a person can change sex"
But a tribunal panel unanimously concluded the “lack of belief in transgenderism and conscientious objection to transgenderism in our judgment are incompatible with human dignity and conflict with the fundamental rights of others, specifically here, transgender individualsâ€.
Publishing its conclusions, the tribunal panel said: “In our unanimous judgment there was no contravention of part 5 of the Equality Act 2010 and the claimant was not subjected to discrimination.
“Those complaints are dismissed.â€
Dr. Mackereth has said he will appeal.
In his witness statement to tribunal hearings in July, Dr Mackereth said that transgender individuals “may find my views to be offensiveâ€.
Dr. Mackereth, who was trained to assess eligibility for Employment Support Allowance or the capability element of Universal Credit, also said there was no deliberate desire on his part to offend people.
But the tribunal “found that his beliefs were likely to cause offence and have the effect of violating a transgender person’s dignity or creating a proscribed environment, or subjecting a transgender person to less favourable treatmentâ€.
As well as claiming religious discrimination, Dr Mackereth said no effort was made to accommodate his beliefs, such as referring transgender clients at Birmingham’s Five Ways assessment centre to another doctor.
Responding to the judgment, Dr Mackereth, who now works as an emergency doctor in Shropshire, said: “I am not alone in being deeply concerned by this outcome.
“Staff in the NHS, even those who do not share my Christian convictions, are also disturbed as they see their own freedom of thought and speech being undermined by the judges’ ruling.
“No doctor, or researcher, or philosopher, can demonstrate or prove that a person can change sex.
“Without intellectual and moral integrity, medicine cannot function and my 30 years as a doctor are now considered irrelevant compared to the risk that someone else might be offended." ■