Keir Starmer responds to landmark trans ruling for first time - 'really pleased'

Keir Starmer has welcomed a landmark ruling that biological sex should determine whether people can use same-sex spaces.

The Prime Minister said he was "really pleased" that the controversial Supreme Court announcement has given "much-needed clarity" on transgender issues. The ruling found that people should be viewed in law according to their sex at birth.

It comes after Equalities Minister and Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said transgender women should use male toilets. The Prime Minister told the : "I welcome the decision of the Supreme Court, which has given us clarity, much-needed clarity, and I think for those that are now drawing up guidance, it's a much clearer position.

"So I'm really pleased that the court has now clarified the position. We can move on from there and I think that's been very helpful, and I would welcome that."

He went on to say that "a woman is an adult female" when pushed on whether he believed a transgender woman was a woman. He told West Country: "I think the Supreme Court has answered that question."

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Asked if that meant he did not believe a transwoman is a woman, Sir Keir said: "A woman is an adult female, and the court has made that absolutely clear. I actually welcome the judgment because I think it gives real clarity. It allows those that have got to draw up guidance to be really clear about what that guidance should say.

"So I think it's important that we see the judgment for what it is. It's a welcome step forward. It's real clarity in an area where we did need clarity, I'm pleased it's come about.

"We need to move and make sure that we now ensure that all guidance is in the right place according to that judgment."

Ms Phillipson earlier said businesses and services can now "operate with absolute confidence" - as she said trans women should use men's toilets. Asked on the BBC's Today Programme whether a transgender woman should use male or female toilets, she responded: "That would be on the basis of biological sex, that would apply right across the board to all single sex provision."

But she suggested that businesses should have unisex facilities in place. Ms Phillipson, the first Government minister to respond, said: "I do welcome the clarity that the Supreme Court judgment has brought in this area, making clear that biological sex is the basis on which single-sex spaces are provided."

She continued: "Before I was a Member of Parliament I used to run a women's refuge, so I know more than most how essential it is that women, particularly those who've experienced sexual violence and male abuse, are able to have safe, therapeutic environments, and that's why there has always been protection there within the law for single-sex spaces. There has been some confusion. I'm glad that's been cleared up, because providers can now operate with absolute confidence in delivering single-sex spaces for biological women."

In a long-awaited judgment last Wednesday, the court confirmed the terms "woman" and "sex" in the 2010 Equality Act "refer to a biological woman and biological sex". This means transgender women with a gender recognition certificate (GRC) can be excluded from single-sex spaces if "proportionate".

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