Left-wing councils warn they'll defy new rules on single-sex spaces as they claim guidance is 'harmful to the rights of trans people'

By GREG HEFFER, POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT Published: 10:00, 6 August 2026 | Updated: 10:30, 6 August 2026 A group of Left-wing councils have warned they will defy new rules on single-sex spaces as they claimed the guidance is 'harmful to the rights of trans people'. Local leaders from six London boroughs - Lambeth, Waltham Forest, Southwark, Hackney, Haringey and Lewisham - said they could resist guidance prepared by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC). A new code of practice on the Equality Act 2010, including the use of toilets and changing rooms as single-sex spaces, came into force on Wednesday. It set out single-sex toilets, changing rooms, hospital wards and refuges must be used based on a person's birth sex, not the gender with which they identify. The guidance has been issued after a landmark Supreme Court ruling on biological sex in April last year, which saw judges state the words 'woman' and 'sex' in the Equality Act 2010 refer to a biological woman and biological sex. In an open letter to Labour's Bridget Phillipson, the women and equalities minister, the six leaders and other senior councillors said it was 'simply unacceptable' that the new guidance 'is harmful to the rights of trans people and will make their exclusion from public life more likely, not less'. They added: 'This will feel like an attack to the countless trans people in our communities who are simply trying to live their lives in safety and wish to be treated with respect.' The Green and Liberal Democrat-led councils warned they would not 'put our staff in the impossible position of policing entry to public spaces' and said they were now 'reviewing all of our internal practices to ensure that no trans person is excluded on the basis of our actions'. A transgender flag flies in front of Parliament during the Trans Pride march in Westminster last year It comes after Lambeth councillors last month backed a call for the council to refuse to implement the EHRC's amended code of practice. The councils demanded that Ms Phillipson confirm the new guidance 'cannot be used to exclude trans people from services'; introduce legislation to 'protect the rights of trans and non-binary people'; and 'create an equalities framework that protects trans people's safety, dignity and humanity'. They wrote in their letter: 'We say this to you in no uncertain terms: Trans women are women, trans men are men, and non-binary identities are fundamentally valid. 'As councils who are proud to be boroughs of sanctuary, with significant LGBTQ+ communities, we are committed to being safe, welcoming and inclusive places for all residents, regardless of their background or identity. 'We have an unshakeable commitment to ensuring that Trans+ residents can access services safely, with dignity and free from discrimination or harassment. They added: 'The Government's own Equalities Impact Assessment acknowledges that there is a real risk Trans+ people could face exclusion, discrimination, or difficulties accessing services if organisations misinterpret the ruling, based on appearance alone. 'Overly broad enforcement can, and will, lead to trans and non-trans people alike being challenged and excluded from services and facilities. 'Meanwhile, the code introduces a dangerous lack of clarity for us as service providers, leaving our staff at risk of inadvertent discrimination where no third spaces are available to Trans+ people. We won't put our staff in the impossible position of policing entry to public spaces. 'We stand in solidarity with trans people, an already marginalised community subject to increasing discrimination. 'This Government claims it is standing up for equality. That can never be the case while the rights of trans people are treated as an afterthought.' A Government spokesman said the code of practice 'provides the clear, workable guidance they need and if organisations are still unclear, they should get specialist legal advice'. They added: 'The Government is committed to upholding single-sex spaces while also protecting the rights of trans people.  'There are clear laws in place to protect trans people from discrimination and harassment, which we continue to uphold.'