The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) updated code of practice comes into force in the UK today (August 5), despite over 160 MPs signing a 'prayer' motion to block it, including more than 90 Labour backbenchers. Trans organisations across the UK have also criticised the code, calling it a major step back for trans rights.
What the code says
The updated code addresses scenarios from sport, stating trans people should compete alongside others of their birth sex rather than gender identity, to hospital wards, which can lawfully exclude trans patients if single-sex.
The guidance, spanning more than 300 pages, encompasses nine protected characteristics including age, sex, disability, race and gender reassignment, and has been comprehensively updated for the first time since 2011. It follows a landmark Supreme Court judgment in April 2025, which ruled the words "woman" and "sex" in the Equality Act 2010 refer to a biological woman and biological sex.
Reactions from trans groups
Alexandra Parmar-Yee, Director at Trans+ Solidarity Alliance, called for the law to be changed to protect trans people's ability to go about their day to day lives safely. "The Code of Practice has already caused serious harm to trans people across the UK, and these harms will only increase with implementation. Trans people will be shut out of the services they need, made to feel unwelcome and unsafe in public spaces," she said.
Jess O'Thomson, trans rights lead at Good Law Project, said: "It's difficult to believe just how far backwards our government has gone on trans human rights. This Labour government pushed through its transphobic guidance in the face of opposition from many MPs, including nearly a hundred of its own backbenchers. It's not just immensely harmful. We think it's unlawful, and completely against human rights."
Government response
In May, Women and equalities minister Bridget Phillipson said the Supreme Court ruling had "made it clear that sex means biological sex" under the Equality Act, "and that trans people are still protected by the Act".
As the new code came into force, a Government spokesperson told The Mirror: "The government is committed to upholding single-sex spaces while 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."
If you have been affected by this story, contact Mindline Trans+'s emotional and mental health support helpline for anyone identifying as trans, non-binary, gender variant, and their families, friends, colleagues and carers. Their phone line is open Mondays and Fridays, 8pm to midnight. Ring 0300 330 5468.
