Exclusive:Senior Labour MP urges Sir Keir Starmer to 'stick to' transgender manifesto commitment
A senior Labour MP has told the Prime Minister to “stick” to the party’s manifesto commitment to reform the gender recognition law, despite the controversial Supreme Court ruling.
Leeds Central and Headingley MP Alex Sobel told The Yorkshire Post he is “a firm believer of self determination, self ID and allowing all to live their lives as long as they do not cause harm to others”.
He urged Sir Keir Starmer to uphold the 2024 manifesto commitment “to modernise, simplify, and reform the intrusive and outdated gender recognition law to a new process”.
The former shadow minister’s intervention is one of the most significant from a Labour MP since the Supreme Court’s ruling that sex is biological sex under the 2010 Equality Act.
This effectively bans trans men and women with a gender recognition certificate from single sex spaces, such as toilets, hospital areas and sports.
Gender critical campaigners celebrated the judgement, however LGBT groups said this marginalises transgender people.
Sir Keir, who has previously said “trans women are women”, welcomed the Supreme Court ruling and said it is “time now to lower the temperature” of the debate.
“It’s real clarity in an area where we did need clarity, I’m pleased it’s come about,” he added.
“We need to move and make sure that we now ensure that all guidance is in the right place according to that judgment.”
However, Mr Sobel said “deeply concerned about the implications of the decision”, adding that “the right to self-determination is essential for freedom, safety and privacy”.
“The purpose of the Supreme Court decision is to supposedly provide clarity, and whilst the independence of our judiciary is fundamental, so far we have only had confusion,” the Leeds Central and Headingley MP said.
“There is a real feeling of fear that has far-reaching consequences for anyone who is marginalised - including trans men and women, non-binary and gender queer people, and intersex people.”
Only yesterday, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said that trans people could use disabled loos, while senior Cabinet minister Pat McFadden was forced to clarify there would be no “toilet police”.
Since the judgement, the British Transport Police said trans women would be searched by male officers, which Mr Sobel described as “not just deeply troubling and problematic but, in my opinion, an overreach of the ruling”.
Quoting last year’s general election manifesto, Mr Sobel also said: “We need to stick to our manifesto commitment to modernise, simplify, and reform the intrusive and outdated gender recognition law to a new process.
“We must remove indignities for trans people who deserve recognition and acceptance.”
Earlier in the year, reports suggested that Labour had quietly shelved its plans to update gender recognition laws after the rise of Reform UK.
Nigel Farage’s party are currently leading the polls for the mayoral races in Hull and East Yorkshire and Doncaster.
In February, the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “We stand by our commitment to modernise gender recognition rules as set out in the manifesto, and we’ll set out our next steps on this work in due course.”
Since then however, there has been no update and given the turbulence following the Supreme Court ruling Labour may once again decide to kick it into the long grass.