Dozens of biologists and doctors have called on the government to restore trans people’s access to public spaces after a controversial Supreme Court ruling.
✍️ Scientists Slam “Harmful” Ruling
Thirty-eight experts have written to the women and equalities minister, Bridget Phillipson, urging the government to protect trans and non-binary people from “social exclusion” following the ruling, which defined the terms “woman” and “sex” in the Equality Act as referring only to biological women.
The letter demands the government take “urgent action” to restore trans rights in public spaces like toilets and changing rooms, warning that failing to act could “lead to serious harm.”
🚨 “Real Lives in Danger”
Organiser Dr A J Southgate, one of the letter’s authors, told The London Economic: “Decisions based on the misrepresentation of science can put real lives in danger.”
Southgate criticised the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) for its interim guidance supporting single-sex spaces, claiming it was based on “scientific misconceptions or oversimplifications.”
“Trans people deserve safety and recognition, not to have the scientific facts of their lives overwritten by disinformation,” Southgate added, urging the minister to consult “genuine experts” before making policy decisions.
🗣️ Sturgeon Sounds the Alarm
Former Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has also weighed in, warning that the ruling could make life “almost unliveable” for transgender people.
“I think that potentially makes the lives of trans people almost unliveable. It certainly doesn’t make a single woman any safer,” she said, arguing that the real threat to women comes from “predatory and abusive men.”
🏳️⚧️ Seeking Safety Abroad?
Labour peer Lord Cashman took the warning a step further, telling the House of Lords that some trans people are now “seeking asylum abroad” for their safety.
“Currently, trans people in this country live in fear – they live in fear of their safety and their futures. Indeed, some friends are now looking at seeking asylum in countries where they will not fear for their safety but will receive a welcome,” he said.
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