Michael McCormack backs Katherine Deves, Emma McKeon in transgender row

Former Deputy PM Michael McCormack said Katherine Deves and Emma McKeon were correct, and it was unfair for female athletes to compete against “some ex butch bloke”.

Former Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack said he believed Katherine Deves and Emma McKeon were correct that it was unfair for female athletes to compete against “some ex butch bloke”, and should not be attacked for their views.

“The argument she (Ms Deves) has put forward, I know she’s put it in a rather interesting way, but I can see where she is coming from,’’ Mr McCormack said.

“I understand we live in a very different world to what we did 10 or 15 years ago.

“But for those people putting poisoned pen to paper, (what) if your slightly-built late-teenaged daughter is lining up playing sport against some ex butch bloke who is getting an advantage because they now identify as a woman?”

Mr McCormack’s comments come as Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Wednesday threw this support behind Australia’s greatest ever Olympian Emma McKeon who said she “wouldn’t want” to compete against trans women saying it’s “common sense”.

“I personally wouldn’t want to be racing against someone who is biologically a male, so that’s a concern,” McKeon said at Griffith University’s A Better Future For All seminar.

“Now that it’s a growing thing, the sport has to think about how to handle it and how to deal with it, because you do want to be inclusive, but you don’t want to have females racing against swimmers who are biologically male because it’s just not fair,” she said.

Mr Morrison said McKeon’s views were the same shared by Ms Deves, who is standing for the seat of Warringah.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison speaks to the media in Perth. Picture: Jason Edwards

Nationals MP Michael McCormack. Picture: Matt Beaver

“My preference is for girls to play girls, for women to play women, boys to play boys and men to play men,” Mr Morrison said.

“I don’t think this is a terribly remarkable statement. I think it’s common sense.

“Now for those who are trans I want them to participate in sport as well. I want them to have opportunities for inclusion in sport. I want every Australian to be treated with dignity.

“Whether it’s Emma or anyone else who’s made comments about this in support, and as Katherine has been a champion of these (issues) … it’s a common sense position, which I think Australians understand.”

Australian Olympian Emma McKeon. Picture: NIGEL HALLETT

As Mr Morrison kicked the footy with young boys and girls in Brisbane — he was asked by one reporter about his comments just hours earlier that “girls should play girls and “boys should play boys”.

Mr Morrison responded: “That was just a bit of fun.”

News Corp has spoken to several conservative MPs who believe Ms Deves has hit a raw nerve with her comments, and while they don’t condone her language, particularly references to the Nazis, they believe middle Australia likely agrees with her views that transgender athletes should not compete against female athletes.

“For some transgender people, it is very difficult and I understand they identify as a different sex to what they were born,” Mr McCormack said.

“I understand it is a very, very difficult situation, they are trying to fit in and sport is important to them.

“The specific sporting bodies need to take a very close look at this and see how it is affecting women’s sport.

“It is about fairness and it is about biology. We can’t discriminate but we must be fair.

“If you went out into the homes and sports venues right around Australia there would be many more people in Katherine Deves and Emma McKeon’s corner than the other side.’’

Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese on Thursday refused to answer direct questions from News Corp which asked if he agreed with Ms McKeown’s comments. A Labor campaign spokesperson said: “In Australia, women and girls already have the right to play single-sex sport, through the application of the competitive sport exemption in the Sex Discrimination Act 1984”.

BIRMINGHAM FAILS TO ENDORSE DEVES

A senior government minister has failed to endorse embattled Ms Deves.

Speaking with ABC’s RN, Finance Minister Simon Birmingham was given four opportunities to say whether he was comfortable with Ms Deves remaining as the candidate for Warringah.

He declined to answer. "I haven't looked closely at what's being reported," he said instead.

Host Patricia Karvelas she was “going to take that … as you’ve not endorsed her,” to which Senator Birmingham did not interject.

Ms Deves is under fire for a range of now-deleted social media posts in which she likened her anti-trans lobbying to standing up to the Nazis.

In the latest string of tweets, uncovered by news.com.au, Ms Deves said she believes there was a link between cross-dressing men and trans women being “sexual predators, even serial killers”.

“Transvestism is very common amongst sexual predators, even serial killers,” she wrote in the now deleted tweet.

Nominations close for political candidates on Thursday, meaning today is the last day the Liberal Party can remove her name from the ballot paper.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison this week continued to stand by Ms Deves.

And now NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet has reportedly shown his support for Mr Morrison.

The Australian’s Investigations Editor Sharri Markson reports Mr Perrottet sent a text message to the Prime Minister.

Mr Morrison has said that while Ms Deves “regrets” the comments she made in the past about transgender Australians, she is a “strong campaigner” on a “very important issue”.

On Tuesday night, Ms Deves did not attend a local community Q&A session in Manly.

While she had agreed to appear earlier, representatives for her later confirmed she was not going to be at the event.

Mr Morrison refused to comment on whether the government should implement stronger vetting processes to keep candidates’ controversial pasts from threatening to derail future campaigns.

His hand-picked candidate has threatened to disenfranchise moderate liberal voters as well as NSW MPs like Trent Zimmerman and Dave Sharma, with NSW Treasurer Matt Kean saying on Tuesday morning it was “very concerning”.

Mr Morrison said he was committed to standing up for his team members, and did not care to play into allegations of factional fractures.

“She is a woman standing up for women and girls and their access to fair sport in this country,” he said.

“Now I’m not going to allow her to be silenced. I’m not going to allow her to be pushed aside.

“We will make sure that she won’t be silenced.

“I think she’ll make a great member of parliament.

“She has learned in her advocacy in her private life, the better ways to do things to take things for as a member of parliament.”

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg would not comment on whether Katherine Deves should be disendorsed over her transgender comments. Picture: NCA NewsWire /Brendan Beckett

Mr Minns on Tuesday said sporting clubs should be supported when they made decisions about trans athletes to prevent an “unfair advantage”.

Josh Frydenberg remained tight-lipped on Tuesday on whether embattled Ms Deves should be disendorsed after making controversial comments about transgender people.

The Treasurer was asked if the party would withdraw support Ms Deves after she described trans kids as “surgically mutilated and sterilised”.

Mr Frydenberg said while her comments were “insensitive”, she had apologised for the hurt the comments had caused.

“They were inappropriate and they were unacceptable,” he said during a visit to Torquay, in Victoria.

“There’s no mistaking that I feel very strongly about that.

“She has apologised and that was the right thing to do.”

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg says Liberal candidate and Save Women's Sport co-founder Katherine Deves has done “the right thing” by apologising for her transgender comments. Picture: Supplied

Mr Frydenberg said Ms Deves had raised issues around safety of girls, fairness in sport, and legitimate competition, which were “legitimate issues”.

“I understand them,” he said.

“I think many parents can understand them.

“Let’s debate those issues without the use of such wrong analogies and language.

“She recognises that and that’s why she’s apologised.”

In a Facebook post on Monday night, Northern Territory Liberal candidate Jacinta Price backed Ms Deves.

The post featured an image of Ms Price alongside Ms Deves, saying she was “a champion for women’s rights and common sense”.

“I back her 100 per cent,” it said.

CLP Senate candidate Jacinta Price (right) has come out in support of Katherine Deves. Picture: Facebook

In the post, Ms Price went on to say that: “If Deves can be silenced then ALL women can be silenced”.

“Enough is enough! We women have fought for decades for our rights and now they’re under attack.”

Meanwhile, Mr Minns told Sydney radio station 2GB on Tuesday: “I think it’s a complicated issue but the simple fact is when young male adolescents go through puberty they have a large amount of a natural chemical called testosterone.

“It’s a powerful, natural anabolic steroid and there’s simply not enough preparation, training, dieting or natural skill for female athletes to overcome that competitive advantage.”

Mr Minns said it was “no-one’s fault, it’s just a problem of biology”.

“We can’t turn away from these issues as a result of the fact that we’ve got the situation,” he said.

“So when sports make decisions to ensure you have got a level playing field and fairness is really at the centre of competitive sport in particular, you need to support those sports when they undertake those rules.

“It’s designed to stop an unfair advantage.”

Originally published as Michael McCormack backs Katherine Deves, Emma McKeon in transgender row