Ed Davey criticised by brother on LinkedIn over Lib Dem trans rights challenge to single-sex guidance
Ed Davey’s brother has criticised his Party’s position on trans rights (Image: Getty/Canva)
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey has been publicly criticised by his brother, barrister Charles Davey, over the party’s stance on single-sex spaces following the EHRC’s updated code of practice.
In a LinkedIn post, Charles Davey wrote: “Opposition to single sex spaces demonstrates a sad lack of insight, understanding or compassion for girls and women in a society tainted by violence against girls and women,” before adding: “Single sex spaces are spaces in which women can feel safe. It does not matter if the transgender woman is the most wholesome person in the world. That misses the point.”
The comments came after Ed Davey and Liberal Democrat women and equalities spokesperson Marie Goldman wrote to education secretary Bridget Phillipson criticising the EHRC document. In the letter, they said: “We do not believe that the new code of practice is fit for purpose. It does not provide clear and workable guidance, and it does not do enough to protect everyone from discrimination, harassment and victimisation.”
They also wrote: “We do not want to become a country where people are barred from accessing essential services simply for who they are, or where women are asked to prove that they are women, just to go about their lives.”
A spokeswoman for Sir Ed said he “understands his brother has held a number of views that are different from his over many years and has always respected him for that”.
What the EHRC single-sex code says
The EHRC published updated guidance in May. The code of practice for services, public functions and associations runs to more than 300 pages and covers nine protected characteristics, and was updated in full for the first time since 2011.
The code says a service must be used on the basis of biological sex for it to be classed as single-sex under the Equality Act, reflecting a Supreme Court ruling in 2025. It also suggests it can be legitimate, in limited circumstances, to ask someone to confirm what their sex is, but says this must be done “as sensitively as possible” and must respect privacy.
Lib Dem stance and wider context
The row lands amid wider scrutiny of the party’s approach to trans equality, including previous questions about Ed Davey’s stance on the Supreme Court trans ruling.
Davey is the leader of the Liberal Democrats and MP for Kingston and Surbiton. He served as Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change in the 2012–2015 Conservative–Liberal Democrat coalition government, and has often campaigned on health and social care. He has spoken publicly about being a long-term carer for his disabled son and previously for his mother.
