JK Rowling fiercely defends NHS nurse who refused to share changing room with trans colleague amid tribunal ruling
JK Rowling has waded into the ongoing discussion surrounding a nurse who objected to a transgender doctor using female changing rooms being cleared of all gross misconduct allegations.
Sandie Peggie was suspended from her role at Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy in January 2024 after complaining about Dr Beth Upton, who is transgender, using female changing facilities.
While she was cleared of all gross misconduct allegations, her employment tribunal against NHS Fife continues, with the health board having spent over £220,000 defending the case.
Her solicitor Margaret Gribbon said: “On Tuesday, July 14, the evening before the resuming of her tribunal, Sandie Peggie received confirmation from Fife health board that following a disciplinary hearing, none of the gross misconduct allegations against her were upheld.”
The nurse brought a case against NHS Fife and Dr Upton under the Equality Act 2010. The incident occurred on Christmas Eve 2023 when Peggie encountered Dr Upton in the changing room at Victoria Hospital.
Peggie told the tribunal she had felt “embarrassed and intimidated” when Dr Upton started to undress in front of her. The pair exchanged words, though the details of their conversation are disputed.
Following the confrontation, Dr Upton complained to NHS Fife about Ms Peggie’s behaviour, leading to her suspension on January 3, 2024.
The case has attracted significant political attention, with former SNP health secretary Alex Neil calling for NHS Fife’s leadership to resign over the “unacceptable” £220,000 spent on the legal dispute.
However, First Minister John Swinney has backed the health board, telling LBC News: “I have confidence in the board of NHS Fife. They have got to get on with delivering health services for the people of Fife.”
Health Minister Neil Gray also expressed confidence in the health board when questioned by The Courier.
It is Gray’s backing of NHS Fife that caught the eye of Harry Potter author Rowling, a public figure who’s no stranger to expressing her advocacy for biological women’s rights.
Reacting to an article about Gray’s support for the health board, Rowling fumed: “This is Nicola Sturgeon’s legacy…
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“A government that publicly backs the hapless, unprofessional, ideologically captured health board that’s persecuting a nurse for asserting her legal right to a single-sex changing room.”
In an earlier post on X, Rowling made clear her stance on the debate in a sarcastically-toned post that read: “Never forget: women can’t know for sure they’re women unless they’ve had their chromosomes checked…
“But if a man says he’s a woman he’s definitely a woman and it is highly offensive to mention his chromosomes, which are entirely irrelevant to whether or not a person is a woman.”
Peggie’s disciplinary hearing on June 25 considered four gross misconduct allegations: two relating to patient care failures, one of “misgendering” Dr Upton, and one relating to the Christmas Eve changing room encounter.
This is Nicola Sturgeon’s legacy: a government that publicly backs the hapless, unprofessional, ideologically captured health board that’s persecuting a nurse for asserting her legal right to a single-sex changing room.https://t.co/PKjKyxz5lh
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) July 19, 2025
These included claims she “walked out of a resuscitation unit when Dr Upton entered, leaving a patient unseen” and a “missing patient incident” on December 18, 2023.
NHS Fife confirmed there was “insufficient evidence to support a finding of misconduct” after reviewing evidence including written submissions and witness testimony.
The health board stated: “While no formal sanctions have been imposed, the panel concluded that a facilitated reflective practice discussion would be appropriate.”
Gribbon said her client was “relieved and delighted that this 18-month-long internal process has concluded and cleared her of all allegations.”
Despite the clearance, Peggie’s employment tribunal against NHS Fife and Dr Upton resumed on Wednesday in Dundee.
The tribunal heard evidence from NHS Fife’s Equalities and Human Rights Lead Officer Isla Bumba, who advised Dr Upton had a “right” to use female changing rooms because the medic “identifies as a woman”.
She admitted the health board “Googled” guidance from other health boards as it lacked its own trans inclusion policy.
The tribunal comes after April’s UK Supreme Court ruling that “woman” and “sex” in the Equality Act 2010 refer to “biological woman and biological sex”.
Ms Peggie has called on NHS Fife to “stop permitting any man who identifies as a woman” access to female-only spaces following the judgment.