A Liberal Democrat council spent £13,000 making one toilet block gender neutral, a new report has revealed. As reported by the Telegraph, the toilet block at Latchmere Recreation Ground in south London was modified by Kingston Council.
The council is run by Lib Dem party leader Ed Davey, MP for Kingston and Surbiton. The £13,000 was spent while council taxes had been hiked by 5%. The Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that the definition of a woman is based on biological sex in a significant judgment.
This means transgender women will be barred from female-only spaces such as women’s bathrooms.
However, third spaces can still be created, including unisex changing rooms and bathrooms.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Thursday, Equality and Human Rights Commission chairwoman Baroness Kishwer Falkner said: “There isn’t any law saying that you cannot use a neutral third space, and they should be using their powers of advocacy to ask for those third spaces.”
However, Conservative MP Kevin Hollinrake argued the spending required for more of these spaces would be a “flagrant disregard for the priorities of hard-working people.”
As per the MailOnline, he said: “The Liberal Democrat-run Kingston council squandered £13,000 of taxpayers’ money on gender-neutral toilet conversions, all while imposing a five per cent council tax hike, making Kingston the most expensive borough in London.”
While the Supreme Court ruling is significant, it is likely that the debate around gender will continue.
Former Supreme Court judge Jonathan Sumption has warned that many are misinterpreting the ruling, adding that the Supreme Court is not forcing anyone to make single sex spaces.
He said: “That’s the main point, which I think has been misunderstood about this judgment. I think it’s quite important to note that you are allowed to exclude trans women from these facilities. But you are not obliged to do it.
“So, for example, the authorities of a sport such as women’s boxing, women’s football, are allowed to limit it to biological women. They were not in breach of the discrimination rules of the [Equality] Act. But the judgment does not mean that the sporting authorities have got to limit women’s boxing or women’s football to biological women.”
Prominent campaigners in favour of protecting female biological status have welcomed the ruling.
Author JK Rowling celebrated the judgement, saying: “It took three extraordinary, tenacious Scottish women with an army behind them to get this case heard by the Supreme Court.
“I’m so proud to know you.”
