Wes Streeting says trans women are ‘by definition' NOT women as Labour finally wakes up from years of woke dithering
Commenting for the first time since last week's Supreme Court ruling, Streeting said the court was right.
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Sir Keir Starmer finally admitted yesterday he had changed his mind to agree with the court's definition that sex is defined by biology at birth.
Top politicians and feminist campaigners hailed the landmark decision as a "victory for common sense".
But the PM was blasted by Tory leader Kemi Badenoch who claimed he spent years dithering over how to define a woman and only made a decision following the ruling.
Meanwhile Mr Streeting told The Sun: "By definition trans women are trans women.
"I have always and will always respect people's identities and I have no trouble whatsoever referring to trans women by their names, referring to them as women as shorthand, or using pronouns like she and her.
"I don't think that's an issue and I think the vast majority of people in our country would also want to be respectful in that way.
"But by definition they're not the same as biological women.
"There are important differences and that is particularly important in a health context.
"It should not be beyond the wits of all of us in the country to live in a world where women are protected and respected and their rights upheld, and so are trans people, and that's the approach the Government's taking."
Mr Streeting dramatically ditched his hardline stance on gender on Never Mind the Ballots last year.
I was wrong to say all trans women are women, Labour's Wes Streeting tells Never Mind The Ballots
The u-turn came as he admitted it was a mistake to insist all trans women are women.
Mr Streeting said he "takes criticism on the chin" for previously arguing people should "get over" concerns - admitting "there are lots of complexities".
It comes after Sir Keir finally broke his silence on the judgement yesterday declaring he welcomes the "clarity" it brings and stating that a woman is an "adult female".
The PM previously argued "trans women are women" and even said that one in every thousand women can have a penis.
But back from his Easter holidays, Sir Keir said that "a woman is an adult female, and the court has made that absolutely clear".
However, Harry Potter author JK Rowling hit out against the PM despite his latest comments.
Posting on X, formerly Twitter, she said: "Imagine being such a coward you can only muster the courage to tell the truth once the Supreme Court has ruled on what the truth is."
In his speech, Sir Keir said: "I actually welcome the judgement 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 judgement 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 judgement."
Sir Keir Starmer slammed by campaigners
SIR Keir Starmer has been slammed by campaigners and Tory leader Kemi Badenoch for spending years refusing to define a woman.
The PM — who welcomed the Supreme Court judgment — was accused of hypocrisy for previously tying himself in knots over the issue.
In 2022 he declared: "Trans women are women."
The following year he tweaked his position to say a woman is an "adult female".
And in 2024 Sir Keir, drew ridicule for insisting 99.9 per cent of women "don't have a penis" — meaning one in every thousand do.
Ms Badenoch blasted: "The era of Keir Starmer telling us some women have penises has come to an end. Hallelujah!"
Ex-Labour MP Rosie Duffield, now sitting as an independent, joked she wanted to buy him an "I told you so" T-shirt.
She added: "But I would need a different one for every moment of every day."
A Labour source blamed ex-leader Jeremy Corbyn for the party's disarray.
The source said: "This just shows why it was so important that Keir hauled the Labour Party back to the commonsense position the public take on these sorts of issues.
"He gradually moved the party from one that took the activist position to a serious, sensible one that protected women's spaces while allowing for respectful debate.
"It's one of the reasons the country felt Labour was safe to elect just a few years after the disaster of 2019."
Despite the defiant statement it took only a few hours for Sir Keir's wokest MPs to hit out at the decision.
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