Yorkshire MPs reject changes to equality code over concerns about trans people
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) updated its code of practice after the Supreme Court judgement in April 2025 ruled that “sex” under the Equality Act 2010 means biological sex.
Eight Yorkshire MPs have signed a motion to reject proposed changes to the UK’s equality code of practice, over concerns it will enforce segregation for trans people.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) updated its code of practice after the Supreme Court judgement in April 2025 ruled that “sex” under the Equality Act 2010 means biological sex.
The code, proposed to the House of Commons last month, would mean trans people should use facilities such as public bathrooms based on their birth sex rather than their gender identity.
It will become statutory after 40 days, unless either House disapproves it.
Nadia Whittome, MP for Nottingham East, tabled an early day motion to disapprove the draft Code, which has now been signed by 130 MPs.
In a post to social media, she said: “The Code will exclude trans people from services and facilities that they have long used without issue, putting them at increased risk of harassment and violence, and effectively pushing them out of public life.
“It ushers in an era of enforced segregation for trans people, the policing of which will be outsourced to service providers, including businesses, charities and public bodies.”
One of the Yorkshire signatories, Alex Sobel, MP for Leeds Central and Headingley, is concerned that the code does not protect trans people from exclusion, “for which there is no proportionate basis”.
He said: “The EHRC exists to protect equality and human rights, yet many trans people are telling me they feel increasingly unsafe as a result of the guidance.
“Some of my trans constituents have told me they are now too anxious to use everyday community spaces due to increased levels of harassment towards them.
“In my view, the code creates confusion rather than clarity, and does not strengthen protections for trans people.”
At a Women and Equalities Committee session last week, Mr Sobel was invited to question the chair of the EHRC, Dr Mary-Ann Stephenson, about the code.
He said: “Colleagues and I asked how the guidance would be applied by the police, in healthcare settings and in single-sex spaces such as toilets.
“The responses did not provide reassurance, and I left with even greater uncertainty about how the guidance will work in practice.”