Transgender people could be treated in private NHS rooms, Wes Streeting says

Transgender people could be treated in private rooms in the NHS, the Health Secretary has said, as he admitted wishing he had listened earlier to the debate around single-sex spaces.

Wes Streeting told LBC radio the NHS is still updating its guidance after the Supreme Court ruled the terms “woman” and “sex” in the 2010 Equality Act “refer to a biological woman and biological sex”.

This means transgender women with a gender recognition certificate (GRC) can be excluded from single-sex spaces if “proportionate”.

Asked if transgender people will be treated on male wards and will use male changing rooms and toilets in the NHS, Mr Streeting said: “No, what we want to do is make sure we have single-sex provision on wards in the NHS, and that’s based on biology, and to make sure that trans people have access to safe and dignified and respectful care.”

He said there is a “palpable anxiety” among transgender people about their rights and dignity.

He added “we can and must” uphold the “rights, the freedoms, the spaces for women as sex-based rights” while also upholding the respect and freedoms of transgender people.

Pressed on which wards transgender people will be treated on, he said: “It will very much depend on particular settings.

“The NHS is updating its guidance and what we would like to see is appropriate kinds of rooms and private spaces for trans people to be cared for in NHS hospitals.”

He said most people in the UK are “fair-minded and decent” and want transgender people to live with freedom, dignity and respect and “that’s what this Government wants too”.

On whether there could be transgender wards, he added: “It comes back to this question of scale and we’re talking about a relatively small number of people in our country anyway, and a tiny number of people who might be accessing a different range of NHS services at any one time.

“So I just think, on top of everything else that we’re dealing with, not just in the NHS, but also thinking about how you protect women’s spaces and protect trans people’s rights and dignities, let’s also keep some of these challenges in proportion.

“We are talking about a small, tiny number of people who might be in an NHS service on any given day.

“So I don’t think it is beyond the wits and means of leaders of NHS services across the country to find a caring and compassionate way through this.”

Mr Streeting said he wanted every woman and transgender person going into NHS services to feel safe.

Asked about his previous comments that “trans women are women… get over it”, he said: “I’ve addressed this previously and I don’t mind kind of saying, ‘look, you know, I don’t think that was the right thing to say’.

“And actually, I wish I’d listened much earlier. I don’t think we, to be honest, given some of the rough discourse we’ve had on these issues in recent years, I don’t think we lose anything by having a bit of humility to say, ‘actually, I wish we’d listened’.”

Earlier this week, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said he was “really pleased” with the clarity offered by the Supreme Court ruling.

Sir Keir, who had previously said “trans women are women”, was asked to repeat that statement but instead said: “I think the Supreme Court has answered that question.”

Asked if that means he does not believe a transgender woman is a woman, he told ITV West Country: “A woman is an adult female, and the court has made that absolutely clear.

“I actually welcome the judgment because I think it gives real clarity. It allows those that have got to draw up guidance to be really clear about what that guidance should say.

“So I think it’s important that we see the judgment for what it is. It’s a welcome step forward.

“It’s real clarity in an area where we did need clarity, I’m pleased it’s come about.

“We need to move and make sure that we now ensure that all guidance is in the right place according to that judgment.”