The former Equality Secretary announced last week that all public buildings in England should have separate men’s and women’s toilets. He told the Commons last Monday that gender-neutral toilets and facilities put women at a “significant disadvantage” and should be phased out in new office buildings, schools, hospitals and entertainment venues. Ms Badenoch announced the government’s intention to prevent the construction of non-residential buildings exclusively with “universal” toilets. The move will include changes to building regulations and planning guidelines. Speaking at a free speech event in the House of Lords on Monday afternoon, she revealed that civil servants had tried to push back her reforms.
“I didn’t change a word”
“For those of you who saw my toilet announcement about removing gender neutral toilets, you wouldn’t believe how hard it was to get through,” he said. “I’ve had civil servants write on the notice I’ve put out saying ‘you can’t say that’ and ‘we need to check if that’s something you’re allowed to say.’ Ms Badenoch added that despite intervention from Whitehall officials, “not a word was changed” which drew cheers and applause from the audience. Addressing a group of around 200 free speech campaigners, MPs and colleagues, she insisted her speech was not a leadership position as the event was already on her calendar before she launched her candidacy. The Saffron Walden MP, who is seen as a rising star in the Tory party, launched her leadership campaign on Saturday and has already enlisted the support of Michael Gove, the former growth secretary, in a major boost to her campaign. He also told the event that free speech “is no longer something we can take for granted,” adding that attacks on free speech “usually hurt the people who have the least power” in society.
“Lighter, simpler, more agile government”
Ms Badenoch, who resigned as minister at the Leveling Up Department in a joint move with four of her colleagues last week, is in favor of leading the Conservatives on a platform of “lighter, simpler, more agile government”. The event, which was organized by a cross-party group of peers, was already on Ms Badenoch’s calendar ahead of her leadership bid as she was due to speak there in her capacity as equalities minister. “Freedom of speech is no longer something we can take for granted as a commonly shared value,” he said. “The reality is that attacks on free speech usually hurt the people with the least power. They do not control the institutions and therefore rely on their voices and the tools of persuasion and logic. “I know from experience that talking about issues like race, ethnicity or LGBT rights can get you in hot water, but as an MP I’m safer than a lot of people who are genuinely afraid of losing their jobs.”
