𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Labour leadership hopeful Andy Burnham has “serious questions to answer” over his views on single-sex spaces, MPs have warned. The Greater Manchester Mayor has faced a backlash after his comments backing transgender women being allowed to use female toilets.

He also dismissed the idea that single-sex spaces should be protected for biological women as “quite a small minority view” during a 2022 meeting. Mr Burnham is in the running to replace Sir Keir Starmer as Prime Minister if he wins a crunch by-election in Makerfield next month. MPs and campaigners have questioned how Britain could end up with another prime minister who does not “stand up for women.”

It comes after incumbent Sir Keir was cricitised for saying in 2023 that “99.9% of women haven’t got a penis.”

Reform UK’s equality spokeswoman Suella Braverman said: “Bandwagon Burnham has serious questions to answer. How can the women of Makerfield vote for a man who still cannot say what a woman is?

“These comments show he is not on the side of women, but on the side of a radical trans lobby and out-of-touch ideology. Simply saying you are a woman does not make it true.

“Even in light of the Supreme Court judgment, Burnham refuses to stand up for women. This madness has gone on for far too long, and it will only end with a Reform UK government.”

Mr Burnham said that biological males who identify as female should be allowed to use women’s toilets.

He was asked at a 2022 meeting with Manchester’s “youth combined authority” whether men who self-identify as women should be allowed to use women’s toilets.

He replied: “Clearly, there is a group of people who do feel that toilets should be a safe space only for women and there should not be anyone biologically a male allowed in that space.

“I don’t think that’s a majority view. I think it’s a minority view and quite a small minority view, actually. But it is a view, so you can’t completely ignore it. Possibly, they might be women who have experienced male violence at some point in their life. I don’t know, that’s one way of looking at it.”

He added: “The idea that people are falsely portraying their gender in a different way just because they want to abuse a women’s space or encroach on women’s safety … maybe it happens, but you are talking a tiny, tiny, tiny number of people.

“So why are we allowing everyone to get into this really polarised and terribly hateful debate about these issues? I am going to make it really plain: I support trans rights, and I want that to be known.”

Mr Burnham was contacted for a response to those comments.

The row threatens to revive Labour’s “woman problem”, which dogged Sir Keir for years when he failed to define a woman.

Independent MP Rosie Duffield, who left Labour after feeling “hounded” over her views on gender, said: “I hope Andy shows an interest in engaging with women’s rights groups and former Labour Party members who have left over this issue and the way they were hounded, expelled or discriminated against because of their mainstream view on issues such as protecting women’s single-sex spaces or upholding the Equality Act as clarified by the Supreme Court in 2025.

“I am one of those women treated appallingly by the Labour Party and would need to see leadership and meaningful change on women’s rights before I considered rejoining the party I used to love and believe in.”

In 2025, the Supreme Court ruled that a woman is defined by biological sex under equalities law.

Mr Burnham said in an unearthed clip that he did not want to see “culture wars” between trans activists and “people supposedly advocating for women’s rights”.

Journalist Jo Bartosch, a women’s rights campaigner, said: “Can a woman have a penis? That is the ridiculous question Andy Burnham will have to get used to answering if he’s serious about becoming prime minister. Yet the supposedly no-nonsense Northern politician has spent years wriggling around it.”

She added: “But the wannabe PM should ask himself this: nearly a century after equal suffrage was won, why should any self-respecting woman vote for a man who doesn’t respect her rights?”

Philanthropist Duncan Bannatyne, who appeared on the BBC’s Dragon’s Den, withdrew his support for Mr Burnham after his comments emerged.

In a post on X on Wednesday, he said: “Last week, I decided to throw my support behind Andy Burnham for leadership of the Labour Party and on to PM.

“But I cannot do that now that I find out he says trans women, i.e. men, should be allowed to use the ladies’ toilets. I can never support anyone that does this. Biological women must have single sex spaces.”

Downing Street tried to distance Sir Keir from Mr Burnham by saying the by-election candidate “may speak as himself”.

When asked if the Prime Minister’s “100%” backing of the Mayor meant he supported Mr Burnham’s policy positions, the Prime Minister’s press spokeswoman said Sir Keir “speaks for the Government”.

Asked whether there would be a situation in which Sir Keir disagreed with a Labour candidate who has his backing, the spokeswoman said: “I’m not going to get into hypotheticals.”

It comes as a poll released on Wednesday suggested Mr Burnham could lead Labour to victory against Reform in a general election.

The survey, carried out by More in Common, found that Labour would get an eight-point boost with Mr Burnham at its helm if he succeeded in his attempt to become the next party leader.

As Labour leader, Mr Burnham would win back a third of voters who have left the party since the 2024 General Election, according to the survey of 2,599 people.

The “Burnham bounce” would secure Labour 30% of votes, three percentage points ahead of Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, which has consistently led the opinion polls since the autumn of 2025.

Luke Tryl, the More in Common UK director, said: “This is one of the most high-stakes by-elections in history, and the future trajectory of the Labour Party, and indeed British politics more broadly, may depend on what happens in the next month.

“So far, it looks like Andy Burnham’s appeal extends beyond Greater Manchester.

“In a hypothetical general election, he could give Labour a lead over Reform – winning back progressive voters who have drifted away, but also making gains with some of those the party has lost to Reform.

“That said, people recognise the mayoralty and premiership are different roles, and a large part of Burnham’s appeal rests on championing the North and fighting Westminster.

“If he is successful in Makerfield, it could be challenging to sustain his reputation as an outsider from within the House of Commons, especially during this era of anti-politics.”

The Makerfield by-election, which will be held on June 18, was triggered by Josh Simons’ resignation. The former minister was elected in 2024 on a majority of 5,399 votes, but Reform won every ward in the constituency at last month’s local elections and came second in 2024’s General Election.