Tory MP Jamie Wallis comes out as trans and reveals rape ordeal

Jamie Wallis, the Tory MP for Bridgend, has praised the “incredible support” of colleagues after coming out as trans.

In a statement, the 2019-intake MP said: “I’m trans. Or to be more accurate, I want to be. 

“I’ve been diagnosed with gender dysphoria and I’ve felt this way since I was a very young child. I had no intention of ever sharing this with you. I always imagined I would leave politics well before I ever said this out loud.”

Wallis also shared details of a blackmail incident in April 2020, when someone asked for £50,000 to “keep quiet”.

Wallis said the police were “supportive” and that “on this occasion the system worked”, adding that the individual in question was sentenced to two years and nine months in prison.

Wallis continued: “For a while it seemed as though I would be able to get on with things and move on. Being an MP and hiding something like this was always going to be tough, but I arrogantly assumed I was up for it. Well, I’m not.

“A few months back, in September, I 'hooked up' with someone who I met online and when I chose to say ‘no’ on the basis that he wouldn’t wear a condom he chose to rape me. 

“I have not been myself since this incident and I don’t think I will ever recover. It is not something you ever forget, and it is not something you ever move on from.”

Wallis also apologised for fleeing the scene of a car crash in November 2021, an incident for which the MP received a £146 fine.

Responding to Wallis' statement on Twitter, Prime Minister Boris Johnson wrote: “Sharing this very intimate story would have taken an immense amount of courage.

“Thank you [Jamie Wallis] for your bravery, which will undoubtedly support others.”

“The Conservative Party I lead will always give you, and everyone else, the love and support you need to be yourself.”

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