Former Royal College of Nursing policy officer Lisa Mackenzie told an employment tribunal that the union made her feel like a “bigot” because of her views on sex and gender. She was giving evidence in nurse Sandie Peggie’s case, which alleges the RCN failed to support her after a dispute involving a transgender colleague using women’s changing facilities.

Mackenzie said the RCN investigated her external gender-critical policy work in 2019 and questioned whether her values aligned with its equality policies, although no formal disciplinary action followed. The RCN argued her outside work and criticism of the Scottish Prison Service could have affected its own activities; Peggie is seeking a finding that the union discriminated against her beliefs, while her earlier case against NHS Fife produced a partial victory.