A Labour MP has said she will refuse to call comedian Eddie Izzard a woman.
Izzard has been openly trans since 1985 and in 2020 announced she wanted to be “based in girl mode from now on”.
The comedian, 60, also revealed in 2020 that she wanted to use the pronouns “she” and “her”.
But speaking at the conference of the LGB Alliance, a campaign group advocating for lesbian, gay and bisexual people, Labour MP Rosie Duffield said she will not be referring to Izzard as a woman.
Eddie Izzard
Ian West
Rosie Duffield
Kirsty O'Connor
Ms Duffield was asked whether misgendering someone could become a hate crime.
To which she replied: “Is that a serious thing?
“Is that coming to Parliament any time soon?
“I hope not because you might as well arrest me now. I'm not calling Eddie Izzard a woman.”
Izzard had previously revealed her love struggles as a trans woman, saying: "I would like to start dating, but it's complicated with me being a trans woman.
“It's going to have to be a very confident and strong-minded woman who has a relationship with me,” she told the Daily Mail.
Izzard was previously in a relationship with British singer Sarah Townsend, with the pair meeting at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 1989.
In 2018, the comedian said: “I would love to have kids one day, but I am trying to work out how to do that.”
Earlier this month, the comedian announced plans to stand for Labour in Sheffield Central at the next General Election.
