What did Rishi Sunak say about gender? Transphobic controversy erupts in wake of UK PM's speech remarks

Rishi Sunak, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, has come under fire over his recent comments about gender in a speech he gave at the 2023 Conservative Party Conference which lasted more than an hour.

On October 4, 2023, the PM took to the podium to talk about issues ranging from the cancellation of the planned HS2 rail link from Birmingham to Manchester to creating a smoke-free generation.

However, it's his statement, "A man is a man and a woman is a woman," that caught the attention of various netizens online.

Some people shared the same opinions as Sunak, saying that biologically there are only two genders. Alternatively, some were disappointed by the Prime Minister's views and said that this would generate a lot of hate towards transgender and non-cisgender people.

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Rishi Sunak talks about gender in Conservative party speech

On Wednesday, October 4, 2023, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak spoke at the Conservative (Tory) Party Conference. The PM unveiled new post-16 educational qualification criteria for students and also announced that he has formally canceled the planned HS2 rail link from Birmingham to Manchester, as per The Guardian.

In a speech that lasted more than an hour, the PM covered many topics and policies. When he reached the discussion of transgender rights, Rishi said:

"It shouldn't be controversial for parents to know what their children are being taught in school about relationships. Patients should know when hospitals are talking about men or women."

According to The Independent, he concluded his views on the gender debate, without mincing his words:

"We shouldn’t get bullied into believing that people can be any sex they want to be. They can’t. A man is a man and a woman is a woman, that’s just common sense," Sunak said.

Sunak's speech left the internet divided.

Some citizens stood by the Prime Minister of the UK's views about there being only two genders.

However, some reactions opposed Sunak's views and people believed the Prime Minister might have added to the hatred towards transgender people, as per Wales Online.

Netizens also made fun of the Prime Minister for trying to use gender as a way to get ahead in politics.

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Other announcements made by the PM during the Tory Speech

Rishi Sunak talked about politics and the importance of a formidable party by the side of the citizens at the start of his speech:

"At the next election, the choice that people face is bigger than party politics. Do we want a government committed to making long-term decisions, prepared to be radical in the face of challenges and to take on vested interests, or do we want to stand still and quietly accept more of the same?" he said.

Rishi Sunak continued to urge the people listening in from all over the United Kingdom to vote for the Tory Party in the next elections.

"You either think this country needs to change, or you don’t. And if you do, you should stand with me and every person in this whole, you should stand with the Conservatives," he added.

Sunak mentioned the HS2 rail expressing that the government would invest £36 billion saved from HS2 in other transport projects across the United Kingdom which would include a number of road schemes.

According to The Guardian, the PM believed HS2 had overrun in costs and the plans as they stood no longer made economic sense. Rishi Sunak added:

"The facts have changed, and the right thing to do when the facts change is to have the courage to change direction."

Rishi Sunak also talked about a new education regimen for post-16 school education, where he would replace A-levels and T-levels with a new qualification called the advanced British Standard. In this reform, all students would study Mathematics and English until the age of 18 and would take five different subjects.