Olympian Sharron Davies and Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch have called on Andy Burnham to safeguard women's sport for young girls by ensuring a "level playing field." The pair led a rally in Westminster on Wednesday demanding that the Prime Minister protect single-sex spaces at major sporting events across the UK.
Under the Conservatives' proposals, all competitors and officials would be guaranteed the right to single-sex accommodation, changing facilities, and toilets based on their biological sex. Spectators and staff would also have the right to single-sex toilets on this basis. The move follows frustration in Tory ranks that an earlier attempt to secure these provisions in law was voted down by Labour MPs, with Liberal Democrats abstaining.
Rally Demands Single-Sex Spaces
Speaking to a group of women holding placards demanding single-sex spaces be secured, Mrs Badenoch said: "We want to protect women's sport, especially for young girls."
Baroness Davies, a former Olympic swimmer, added: "The Conservative Party put an amendment into the Sporting Bill to say that we must protect the women's category in sport. So every time we bring a major event to the UK, it's really important that women and girls know that they're going to have a level playing field, and they're going to be able to compete fairly and safely. And at the moment, Labour won't do that.
"I've tried in the House of Lords, and now they're trying in the House of Commons, and we will just keep on trying to fight for equality for women in sport. The science shows us that you can't have males in female sport and it's [not] safe or fair. This isn't about excluding anybody – this is just about saying that women and girls deserve that."
Appeal to Andy Burnham
When asked what her message to Mr Burnham would be, Baroness Davies said: "Please listen to young women who just want a level playing field and an equal opportunity to succeed. And this, for them, can be the start of something like myself that's given me my whole career. And potentially, if they allow men into those spaces, then you're removing those opportunities from women."
The attempted changes to the Sporting Events Bill were blocked at committee stage, but Shadow Culture Secretary Rebecca Paul led a fresh charge in Parliament on Wednesday. She said: "We're here today because women's sport should be for women. It's just simply common sense, and we are the party of common sense. And today, we have tabled an amendment to make sure that it will only be biological women playing in major sporting events on British soil."
Conservative Amendment Tabled
She added: "Andy Burnham needs to get serious with this. He needs to recognise that women matter, women are not second-class citizens, and we deserve fair sport. We deserve to be safe when we're playing sport, and he needs to stop putting the feelings of men before what is fair for women."
