All new buildings open to the public will have to include single-sex male and female lavatories under plans announced by Kemi Badenoch.
Draft guidance published on Monday aims to protect the privacy of women and elderly individuals and would apply to all non-residential buildings.
Ms Badenoch, the Minister for Women and Equalities, stated that the Government must step in when “common sense disappears,” following a rise in businesses offering gender-neutral toilets without separate single-sex facilities.
Comparable to bathrooms in family homes, unisex toilets are fully enclosed spaces with lockable doors and sinks. Gender-neutral toilets, on the other hand, are mixed-sex facilities where both men and women use the same cubicles and sinks.
The proposed policy would mean a new supermarket, shop or restaurant should have separate single-sex toilets for men and women at a minimum.
Discourse ‘confused’ by gender activists
In a piece for The Telegraph, Ms Badenoch argues that the discourse around sex-based rights has been “confused” by gender activists, leading to the necessity for legislation that would not have been required a decade ago.
“My job is increasingly spent legislating for common sense and stopping those intent on causing harm,” she says.
“Women should have exclusive access to public toilet facilities reserved specifically for them. Men should have the same. Female loos should have cubicles, while male ones can have urinals.
“Transgender individuals should have privacy. The signage on the door should clearly indicate what to expect.”
Ms Badenoch criticised the Old Vic Theatre in central London for its decision in 2019 to convert all of its male and female toilets to gender-neutral facilities.
She also mentioned that doctors had recently reported instances where girls in certain schools either contracted infections or skipped classes entirely “because they refused to urinate all day” due to their reluctance to use gender-neutral toilets.
