Phillipson tells MPs government will continue to protect single-sex spaces
Bridget Phillipson, the education secretary and minister for women and equality, is making her statement about the supreme court judgement.
She starts by saying this is personal for her.
Before I was elected to this place, I ran a women’s refuge in the north-east for women and children fleeing domestic violence. I know how important it is, and always want survivors to have single sex spaces, based on biology – places of safety after trauma, time in a sanctuary which allowed them therapeutic support, healing from unimaginable male violence and fear.
Phillipson says the government will continue to protect single-sex spaces, based on biological sex.
And it will protect “the rights of all people with protected characteristics now and always”.
Phillipson explains the background to the supreme court ruling.
The people who brought the legal challenge (gender critical feminists) were “not always been treated with the respect that they deserve”, she says.
She says the government supports freedom of speech. But, referring to the protests at the weekend against the judgment, she says “there can be no excuse for defacing statutes and feminist icons, no excuse for threats, no excuse for harassment”.
Key events
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Phillipson criticises Tories for not protecting single-sex spaces, particularly in hospitals
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Phillipson tells MPs government will continue to protect single-sex spaces
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Britons opposed to Trump being allowed to address parliament by almost 3 to 1, poll suggests
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‘Extinction-level event’: Tories fear voters turning to Reform in Lincolnshire
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Rubbish levels in Birmingham now ‘approaching normal’, MPs told, due to efforts to clear bin strike backlog
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Prison officers to be allowed to use tasers under pilot scheme, Shabana Mahmood tells MPs
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No 10 claims government does not routinely ‘police toilets’ as questions continue about impact of supreme court’s ruling
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Lib Dems say IMF report shows need for ‘urgent rethink’ in UK economic policy
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Trans people have experienced ‘real anxiety’ following supreme court judgment, MSPs told
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DUP criticises minister for suggesting opinion polls could determine whether referendum held on Irish reunification
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IMF warns of ‘major negative shock’ from Trump’s tariffs, as it cuts its UK growth forecast from 1.6% to 1.1%
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No 10 says Starmer no longer argues trans women are women amid barrage of harsh questions at briefing
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No 10 refuses to commit to reversing Badenoch’s law curbing supply of unisex toilets – despite minister hinting more needed
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Phillipson to make statement to MPs about supreme court ruling affecting law on single-sex spaces
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Faculty of Advocates criticises Scottish Green MSP over ‘appalling’ attack on supreme court
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Starmer to attend Pope’s funeral, No 10 says
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Trump should be allowed to address parliament when he visits UK, minister says
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Britain and New Zealand to extend defence cooperation, No 10 says
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Phillipson dismisses claims government not adequately funding school breakfast clubs
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Badenoch has already ‘thrown in towel’ ahead of local elections, Lib Dems claim
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Badenoch says she’s ‘not a career politician’ as she plays down Tory prospects in local elections
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Home Office to publish nationalities of foreign criminals in UK
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Starmer says roll-out of breakfast clubs in primary schools in England will be ‘game-changing moment’ for families
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Phillipson urges firms to ensure ‘safe and appropriate’ toilets available for all, including trans people
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Starmer says he is ‘really pleased’ supreme court has given ‘much-needed clarity’ on definition of ‘woman’ in equalities law
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Supreme court ruling means trans women should use male toilets, says equalities minister Bridget Phillipson
Phillipson criticises Tories for not protecting single-sex spaces, particularly in hospitals
Phillipson turns to the Conservatives, and attacks their record.
Our work to protect single-sex bases across society continues in earnest,because, for far too long, under the Conservative government, single-sex spaces were anything but.
And nowhere is that clearer than in our hospitals. Year after year, the party opposite pledged to close mixed sex wars, and yet, year after year, their views not only persisted. It grew massively and year after year, often in their most vulnerable moments, women were denied the privacy and the dignity that they deserved time after time.
Phillipson says the supreme court’s judgment is “welcome”.
The Equality and Human Rightxs Commission is updating its code of practice to reflect the ruling, she says. The government will review that, she says
Phillipson tells MPs government will continue to protect single-sex spaces
Bridget Phillipson, the education secretary and minister for women and equality, is making her statement about the supreme court judgement.
She starts by saying this is personal for her.
Before I was elected to this place, I ran a women’s refuge in the north-east for women and children fleeing domestic violence. I know how important it is, and always want survivors to have single sex spaces, based on biology – places of safety after trauma, time in a sanctuary which allowed them therapeutic support, healing from unimaginable male violence and fear.
Phillipson says the government will continue to protect single-sex spaces, based on biological sex.
And it will protect “the rights of all people with protected characteristics now and always”.
Phillipson explains the background to the supreme court ruling.
The people who brought the legal challenge (gender critical feminists) were “not always been treated with the respect that they deserve”, she says.
She says the government supports freedom of speech. But, referring to the protests at the weekend against the judgment, she says “there can be no excuse for defacing statutes and feminist icons, no excuse for threats, no excuse for harassment”.
JK Rowling, the author and gender critical feminist campaigner who part-funded the legal challenge that led to last week’s supreme court judgment, has criticised Keir Starmer over his response to the ruling. She posted this on social media.
Imagine being such a coward you can only muster the courage to tell the truth once the Supreme Court has ruled on what the truth is.
John Healey will meet his Ukrainian counterpart on Wednesday, as the British government gathers allies to chart a course towards peace in the war-torn country, PA Media reports. PA says:
The defence secretary told the House of Commons that ministers and officials, including from the US and European nations, would discuss “what a ceasefire might look like and how to secure peace in the long-term” when they meet on Wednesday.
Healey also slapped down Vladimir’s Putin’s claims that Russia had observed a promised Easter truce, telling MPs that British military intelligence had found no indication of a pause in fighting.
He told MPs: “I will be also meeting tomorrow the Ukrainian defence minister (Rustem) Umerov and other allies as the government brings together the US, the UK and European ministers, and national defence security advisers, to discuss next steps, including what a ceasefire might look like and how to secure peace in the long-term.
“This war was never just about the fate of one nation. It is about not allowing national borders to be redrawn by force, it is about preventing aggressors across the world from being emboldened to threaten the security of all nations.”
Britons opposed to Trump being allowed to address parliament by almost 3 to 1, poll suggests
Britons are opposed to President Trump being invited to address parliament when he visits the UK by almost three to one, a YouGov poll suggests. Earlier today a government minister said he would be happy to see Trump speaking in parliament. (See 12.26pm.)
‘Extinction-level event’: Tories fear voters turning to Reform in Lincolnshire
Ben Quinn has been in Lincolnshire, where the battle between the Conservative party and Reform UK in the local and mayoral elections is particularly intense. He says some Tories fear an “extinction-level event”. You can read his report here.
Rubbish levels in Birmingham now ‘approaching normal’, MPs told, due to efforts to clear bin strike backlog
Most of the excess rubbish accumulated in Birmingham as a result of the bin strike has been cleared, MPs have been told.
Jim McMahon, the communities minister, said that, even though the strike continues, “significant progress” has been made in clearing the backlog.
Responding to an urgent question tabled by the Conservatives, he said:
The government has repeatedly called for Unite to call off the strikes and accept the fair deal that’s on the table.
The commissioners and the council are undertaking necessary reforms in the context of a challenging financial situation – the legacy of equal pay where women workers were systematically paid less than their male counterparts for similar roles – and although of course the council must chart that course themselves, our actions speak to our determination for the welfare of the citizens of Birmingham.
We’ve been providing intensive support to the council in its efforts to address the backlog of waste that has been building up on the city’s streets and significant progress has been made in the last fortnight.
Through a concerted effort, and with the assistance of other councils, private operators and the endeavour of many hundreds of determined workers who have worked extremely long hours, the result is 26,000 tonnes of excess waste have been removed and the levels are now approaching normal.
More than 100 bin trucks are out every day and regular bin collections have resumed. The council continues to monitor the situation closely to ensure that waste does not build up again.
Prison officers to be allowed to use tasers under pilot scheme, Shabana Mahmood tells MPs
Prison officers in England and Wales will be allowed to use tasers under a pilot to see if this helps keep them safe, Shabana Mahmood, the justice secretary, has announced.
Speaking during justice questions, she said the use of tasers will be piloted following the attack at HMP Frankland which saw guards attacked with hot oil and homemade weapons by Manchester Arena bomb plotter Hashem Abedi.
Mahmood said:
The house will be aware of the attack at HMP Frankland on the 12 of April. The bravery of the officers involved that day undoubtedly saved lives, my thoughts are with them as they recover.
I think also of the victims of the Manchester Arena bombing and their families, who are understandably outraged.
Since the attack, I have suspended access to kitchens in separation centres and in close supervision centres. Alongside that, an independent review will ascertain how this incident was able to happen, what more must be done to protect prison staff and, more widely, how separation centres are run.
The Prison Service will also conduct a snap review of the use of protective bodily armour. In addition, I can today announced that HMPPS (HM Prison and Probation Service) will trial the use of tasers in our prisons.
Wherever we can strengthen our defences, to better protect our staff and the public, we will do so.
No 10 claims government does not routinely ‘police toilets’ as questions continue about impact of supreme court’s ruling
At the afternoon lobby briefing Downing Street was again asked if the government was sticking with the regulations introduced by Kemi Badenoch intended to phase out the provision of unisex toilets. (See 1.33pm.) Bridget Phillipson, the education secretary and minister for women and equalities, has suggested that last week’s supreme court judgment means more unisex toilets are needed, not fewer.
At the briefing, after explaining that the regulations say, the No 10 spokesperson quoted approvingly what Phillipson said in an interview this morning. (See 10.28pm.) Phillipson said that the government does not routinely “police toilets”, that firms like pubs should decide their policy and that they should ensure that “there is a safe and appropriate place for all people to use”.
But the fact that the regulations are in force means that in some respects the government does “police toilets”.
Phillipson is likely to be asked about this when she makes her statement to MPs. It should start around 5.20pm.
During justice questions in the Commons, Nic Dakin, a justice minister, told MPs that the Ministry of Justice is “reviewing all areas that could be potentially impacted on” by last week’s ruling from the supreme court on equality law.
Lib Dems say IMF report shows need for ‘urgent rethink’ in UK economic policy
Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader, has said that today’s IMF report (see 1.01pm) downgrading its growth forecasts for the UK (and the rest of the world) shows the need for an “urgent rethink” in British economic policy. In a statement, Davey said:
Donald Trump’s damaging trade war has taken a wrecking ball to the global economy, with the UK set to be badly hit.
The government needs to be working to boost trade with our allies in Europe and the Commonwealth and tackle Trump’s tariffs head on.
Simply sitting back and hoping we won’t be impacted hasn’t worked. It’s time for an urgent rethink before it’s too late.
In their statement, the Conservatives claimed that the IMF growth downgrade was an indictment of Keir Starmer’s policies. Mel Stride, the shadow chancellor, said:
The latest IMF outlook is a worrying indictment of Labour’s economic approach. Less than a year into their government, Britain is already seeing the consequences of Labour’s high-tax, high-spend agenda.
Roz McCall, a Scottish Conservative MSP, has written to the presiding officer of the Scottish parliament, suggesting that discplinary action should be taken against the Scottish Green MP Maggie Chapman over his comments about the supreme court. (See 12.51pm.) McCall says:
This afternoon, I have formally written to @POScotParl regarding the conduct of Maggie Chapman MSP following her comments concerning the verdict of the Supreme Court on the matter of For Women Scotland v The Scottish Ministers (2024) UKSC 16.
MSPs have responsibilities under the Code of Conduct and a legal duty under the Judiciary and Courts (Scotland) Act 2008. We should always act to protect the independence of the judiciary and these comments threatened the integrity of our judges. It cannot be allowed to stand.
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