Claim that Sarwar’s Equality Act pledge ‘panders to Anti-trans groups’
ANAS Sarwar has been accused of “pandering to anti-trans groups” after pledging to implement the Equality Act “straight away” if his party wins the election.
The Scottish Labour leader made the comments as he launched a “Women’s manifesto” with candidate Carol Mochan yesterday.
Mochan lost her frontbench position in the party after breaking the whip to vote against Holyrood’s gender reforms that would have allowed transgender Scots to self-identify. Sarwar had whipped his MSPs to back the Scottish Government’s Gender Recognition Reform Bill in 2022, even voting for it himself.
The UK Government – under the Tories – blocked the legislation from becoming law the following year. Later, Sarwar would say he regretted supporting the legislation, and his party would not do so now. At the launch of the women’s manifesto, Sarwar said the main new pledge would be to implement the Equality Act following the judgment by the UK’s highest court.
The UK Supreme Court ruled in April 2025 that the definition of a woman under the Equality Act 2010 is based on biological sex.
This has changed the definition of a “woman” in the 2010 Equality Act to mean a biological female, with a gender recognition certificate (GRC) not impacting on it.
The Scottish Government’s arguments that the category of “woman” included both biological females and biological males who held a GRC were rejected by the court.
The ruling led to the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) issuing interim guidance which essentially banned transgender people from using bathrooms or other single-sex spaces of their acquired gender.
The interim guidance would later be changed, and an updated code of practice is set to be laid before the UK Parliament next month. It was forced to change part of the code it had provided to ministers, after a legal challenge by the Good
Law Project.
Despite the guidance still not being published, Sarwar insisted his party would “stand up for women’s rights”.
The party’s women’s manifesto sets out three key points they say will protect women’s rights.
“Delivering single-sex spaces on the basis of biological sex, in schools, sport and every day life by upholding the Equality Act and delivering clear instructions to public services on how to comply with their legal obligations to women and to trans people,” the four-page document reads.
“Recommitting the NHS to deliver single-sex wards on the basis of biological sex and ensuring patients can request same sex provision wherever possible.
“Keeping women’s prisons for women, instructing the Scottish Prison Service to remove all biologically male prisoners from women’s prisons within days of the election.”
Speaking at the launch, Sarwar said: “First of all, the clearest example of the difference is we will stop using taxpayers’ money to challenge women and people, and we’ll get on straight away with implementing the Equality Act and making sure we’re protecting single sex spaces based on biological sex. Services, spaces and schools.”
In response, Scottish Greens MSP Maggie Chapman said: “Many trans people are very worried about what lies ahead, and their anxiety is made even worse when Labour MSPs who previously supported them U-turn like this.
“The Supreme Court decision raised many more questions than answers. It has led to increased hostility from politicians and parts of the media that now feel emboldened.
“Trans people just want to live their lives in peace, but increasingly, they are being put under the
microscope and demonised. They are being scapegoated and vilified. Trans rights are regressing, and trans people feel more marginalised than they have for years.
“It was not long ago that Anas Sarwar and his colleagues voted for gender recognition reform.
“Yet we are now a long way from that consensus, with Labour pandering to anti-trans groups, and whipping up fear and prejudice.
“The Scottish Greens will always stand with our trans siblings.
“Trans rights and women’s rights are not in competition: when the rights of one marginalised group are threatened, all of our rights are at risk.”
Notably, the Labour “Women’s manifesto” does not mention abortion rights, or any plans to support campaigns to decriminalise the procedure in Scotland.
In response to this, the Scottish Labour leader said: “We will absolutely protect abortion rights. There’ll be no changes to abortion rights in the next parliament.”
Trans people just want to live their lives in peace