THE Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) guidance will be a "devastating blow" to transgender people when it comes into force next month, the Scottish Greens have said.
The UK equality watchdog’s code of practice on the use of toilets and changing rooms as single-sex spaces will come into force under law on August 5.
The code will come into effect more than a year after the Supreme Court ruled that under the Equality Act 2010, a woman is defined by biological sex.
The code of practice, which covers England, Scotland and Wales and was published in draft form in May, confirmed a service must be used on the basis of biological sex in order for it to be classed as single-sex under the Equality Act.
This means single-sex toilets, changing rooms, hospital wards and refuges must be used based on a person’s birth sex, not the gender with which they identify.
Transgender women are therefore excluded from using female facilities, while transgender men are barred from male facilities.
The code also suggests – that in some circumstances – it is acceptable to ask someone to confirm what their sex is if “there is clear evidence of an issue with members of the opposite sex accessing or seeking to access the single or separate-sex service or association”.
The Scottish Greens have said they believe the guidance will cement exclusion and segregation into the statutory rules that businesses, services, and public bodies across the UK are strongly encouraged to follow.
It comes as recent statistics from the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) show there were 104 hate crime charges where transgender identity was an aggravator in 2025-26. This is up 21% year-on-year and the highest figure since 2010.
Maggie Chapman, Scottish Green MSP for North East Scotland, said: “August 5 will be a shameful day for human rights and a devastating blow for trans people who have been fearing this for a long time.
“At a time when hate crimes are rising and anti-trans hostility has become increasingly mainstream in our politics, this cruel and punishing guidance will only pour fuel on the fire. It will make life harder, less safe and more humiliating for trans people across the country.
“It means that in the weeks and months ahead, more trans people will be challenged, harassed and forced to justify themselves for simply using services and spaces they have accessed for decades.
“This guidance will give a green light to intrusive and aggressive questioning, and will legitimise discrimination while encouraging suspicion of anyone who doesn't conform to narrow ideas of what men and women should look like.”
Chapman added that it won’t “just affect trans people”.
“It will also dump an inappropriate and impossible burden on employers, businesses and public services, asking them to police confusing, unnecessary and fundamentally unworkable rules,” she added.
“With a new prime minister about to take office, he should scrap this divisive guidance.
"Instead of stoking fear and division, Andy Burnham should work with those affected to build a fairer system that protects everyone's safety without stripping away the rights and dignity of trans people.”
We told how nearly 13,000 toilets and more than 5000 changing-rooms could have to be revamped at gyms, hospitals and leisure centres across Britain at a cost of millions when the new guidance comes into force.
At least 18,000 signs might also need to be changed.
The updated guidance will affect service providers such as restaurants, leisure centres and hairdressers; public functions such as council services; and associations such as local sports clubs with at least 25 members.
For Women Scotland (FWS), which was behind the Supreme Court case, has previously said: “It’s important to remember that the code does not represent a change in the law, just practical help for implementing it.
“If businesses have been complying with the law, there shouldn’t be a need for major changes.”
But a spokesperson for the Trans+ Solidarity Alliance described the guidance as “unworkable” and said it could “lead to widespread harm for trans people and those who don’t conform to gender stereotypes, and put businesses and charities in the crossfire of endless litigation”.
A UK Government spokesperson previously said the statutory guidance is “about giving organisations the guidance they need, not changing the law or creating new rules” and suggested that “many businesses will already be largely compliant with the code so there will be no cost at all”.
