Scottish Labour pledged to implement the Equality Act “straight away” as the party set out its Women’s Manifesto.
Party leader Anas Sarwar met with Labour candidate Carol Mochan and talked to women in the Cumnock constituency.
Mr Sarwar said the main new pledge in the women’s manifesto would be to implement the Equality Act changes.
The UK Supreme Court ruled in April 2025 that the definition of a woman in equalities law is based on biological sex.
This has changed the definition of a “woman” in the 2010 Equality Act to mean a biological female, and that the term “sex” means biological sex. It also said that sex is binary, meaning someone is either male or female.
The sun is out, now let's get the SNP out!
— Anas Sarwar (@AnasSarwar) April 26, 2026
An amazing weekend of campaigning with just 11 days to go until we can vote for change on May 7. pic.twitter.com/SaF7sKGMX4
Mr Sarwar said: “First of all, the clearest example of the difference is we will stop using taxpayers’ money to challenge women and people, and we’ll get on straight away with implementing the Equality Act and making sure we’re protecting single sex spaces based on biological sex. Services, spaces and schools. ”
The manifesto also pledges to deliver single-sex spaces on the basis of biological sex, “recommitting” the NHS to delivering single-sex wards and to “remove all biologically male” prisoners from women’s prisons within days of the election.
The manifesto did not mention protections to abortion rights, but Mr Sarwar said the party would “absolutely protect” them.
He said: “We will absolutely protect abortion rights. There’ll be no changes to abortion rights in the next Parliament.
“But where we do need to make change is the access to skills, access to homes, and also access to support sex spaces based on biological sex, and that is what we need immediately if we elect a Scottish Labour government.”
Labour has also pledged to tackle long waits for women’s procedures, as well provide menopause clinics in every health board, to “protect women’s reproductive rights” and to increase the number of health visitors.
The SNP has been approached for comment.
