Ministers pressed over impact of gender ruling on trans people

Ministers came under pressure yesterday to provide answers on how last week's supreme court ruling on gender identity would affect the daily lives of transgender people, amid confusion over issues such as toilet provision and hospital wards.

- Peter Walker Senior political correspondent

Keir Starmer said he welcomed what he called "real clarity" and "a welcome step forward" in his first response to the supreme court's decision that "woman" in the 2010 Equality Act referred only to a biological woman.

But Bridget Phillipson, who holds the equalities brief alongside her role as education secretary, faced repeated questions about the repercussions of the decision as she gave a Commons statement saying the government would use it to protect single-sex spaces.

Phillipson was criticised by Kemi Badenoch for what the Conservative leader said was a Labour change of heart on the subject, with Badenoch adding that ministers needed to "root out gender ideology from our institutions".

Phillipson hit back, describing the leader of the opposition as a "keyboard warrior" who had failed to grasp the issue as equalities minister, saying Badenoch should "get offline and get on board".

Recounting her pre-parliament role helping to run a women's refuge, Phillipson said the supreme court decision would help secure the safety of such spaces, while also arguing that the ruling was not about "the triumph of one group at the expense of another".

She added: "This is a government that will support the rights of women and trans people now and always.