Boris Johnson has stated the “basic facts of biology” are “overwhelmingly important” after being asked about trans rights in parliament.
It comes after Keir Starmer, the leader of the opposition, recently argued “trans women are women” and noted this is expressly defined in UK law.
Speaking at Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, Mr Johnson said: “When it comes to distinguishing between a man and a woman, the basic facts of biology remain overwhelmingly important.”
The PM did also state that when people are keen to “make a transition in their lives” they must be “treated with the maximum possible generosity and respect”.
The Conservative Party leader added, “we have systems in this country that allow that and have done for a long time, and we should be very proud of it”.
Commenting on Mr Johnson’s remarks, Dominic Arnall, chief executive of LGBT+ rights charity Just Like Us, told The Independent: “While politicians on all sides use trans people as [a] political football to state their place in the so-called culture wars, we must remember that there are trans young people struggling with their day to day lives.
“Be it not being accepted at home, being bullied at school or hearing very negative things about their existence in the media. These discussions need to be brought back to reality and it’s vital that trans young people get the support they need.”
He noted around a third of trans young people are forced to endure daily tension in their homes – adding that LGBT+ young people are also still twice as likely to experience bullying.
When asked to define a woman in an interview with The Times earlier this month, Mr Starmer replied: “A woman is a female adult, and in addition to that trans women are women, and that is not just my view – that is actually the law.
“It has been the law through the combined effects of the 2004 [Gender Recognition] Act and the 2010 [Equality] Act. So that’s my view. It also happens to be the law in the United Kingdom.”
