MP Jamie Wallis interviewed by Sophy Ridge on Sky News
(Picture: Sky News)Conservative MP Jamie Wallis said a part of him “died” after he was raped as he revealed he hopes to begin his transition to a woman as “quickly as possible”.
Mr Wallis, 37, recently came out as trans and also revealed he was blackmailed in 2020 and suffers PTSD after being raped last year.
Speaking to Sophie Ridge on Sunday, the Conservative MP for Bridgend said he has been contacted by a “shocking” number of men and women who have had similar experiences.
“None of us, no matter who you are or what side of the House of Commons you sit on, you cannot get it right until we have an understanding of how pervasive this is,” he said, adding, “at some point we are going to have to find a way of identifying people that need … who have been through this trauma and need help”.
Speaking of his own experience, Mr Wallis said: “I met someone that I liked and things started off quite well actually. Then I was not OK with not being what I consider to be responsible and practice safety in the bedroom and so I withdrew consent and then there was … then he just decided that he was going to do it anyway and I was powerless to stop him.”
He added: “In that moment a part of me died and I have been trying to get it back ever since.”
Tory MP Jamie Wallis describes an experience of rape in which he said a "part of him died" and says he has been trying to recover ever since.
— Sky News (@SkyNews) April 24, 2022
Mr Wallis has spoken for the first time to @SophyRidgeSky since coming out as trans.
Full story: https://t.co/W9N43y4STh pic.twitter.com/hxv9NqgMpT
He said he tried to forget about the horrific ordeal but kept having nightmares and flashbacks.
“I tried to forget about it for a few weeks and it almost worked, almost worked but then you start getting nightmares, flashbacks, it starts occupying every one of your thoughts and you find yourself just staring off into the distance because you’re thinking about it again and that’s when I chose to get some help.”
Mr Wallis, who said he still intends to use he/him pronouns until a later stage in his transition, also opened up about feeling alone as a child, coping with questions about his gender identity.
He said: “I came to the wrong conclusion, at the time I thought it was just me and that maybe there was some horrible mistake or something that had gone very wrong.”
This week has been monumental for me personally.
— Jamie Wallis MP (@JamieWallisMP) April 3, 2022
My inbox has been overwhelmed by supportive messages, especially from my constituents. This support is a reminder of the best part of my job, the people of Bridgend and Porthcawl.
My priority remains serving my constituents. pic.twitter.com/4pMI8PtClS
“As I got older and I started to learn a little bit more about this issue and that moment when you realise it isn’t just you, that moment isn’t just a revelation, it is exciting and terrifying at the same time”, he added.
He explained how he had “tried to become this person that I thought I should have been” but “woke up one day and I realised actually I am no longer ashamed” in 2021.
Mr Wallis also touched on being targeted by a blackmailer who threatened to out him to the public unless he paid £50,000, and the “toxic” debate on transgender participation in competitive sport.
The politician came out in a post online shortly after a gathering for Tory MPs at which the Prime Minister reportedly made a joke about trans issues.
However, Mr Johnson later commended Mr Wallis’s statement by saying it “would have taken an immense amount of courage”.
