STORY
Conservative Party chairman Kevin Hollinrake has told Conservative councillors that Tory-run local authorities should comply with Equality and Human Rights Commission guidance on single-sex spaces. His intervention followed reports that some councils led by Labour, the Liberal Democrats and the Greens could choose not to follow the guidance.
The guidance covers the operation of single-sex services including toilets and changing rooms under the Equality Act 2010. The Guardian reported that it states such facilities should be used according to a person’s sex at birth and sets out the circumstances in which a service remains legally separate or single-sex.
Hollinrake said he would ensure Conservative-run authorities comply and circulated his position in a letter to Tory councillors that was subsequently posted online. The letter followed reports that some Labour, Liberal Democrat and Green-led councils could choose not to follow the guidance.