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Trans women in British Transport Police custody will now be strip searched by male officers – not female – following Wednesday’s Supreme Court ruling.

The force said it is introducing an “interim position” while it digests the Supreme Court’s decision that the definition of a “woman” under the Equality Act 2010 refers to “a biological woman and biological sex”.

A British Transport Police (BTP) Authority spokesman told Sky News: “Under previous policy, we had advised that someone with a gender recognition certificate (GRC) may be searched in accordance with their acquired sex.

“However, as an interim position while we digest today’s judgment, we have advised our officers that any same sex searches in custody are to be undertaken in accordance with the biological birth sex of the detainee.”

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In September last year, BTP, which is responsible for policing the UK’s railways and similar transport systems, published its “position” on transgender and non-binary officers carrying out strip searches.

It said officers would “only be able to search persons of the same sex on their birth or gender recognition certificate (GRC).

Officers who identified as another gender but who did not have a GRC were not allowed to, but if a trans woman had a certificate, they could strip search a female detainee.

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Gender ruling – How it happened

Strip searches involve the removal of more than a jacket, outer coat, gloves, headwear and footwear.

They “expose buttocks, genitalia and (female) breasts”, the BTP guidance says.

The Sex Matters campaign applied for a judicial review of that guidance with the High Court in December.

It said the policy “puts detainees at risk of sexual harassment and sexual assault”, and said it was a violation of Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which protects against torture and inhuman or degrading treatment.

Sex Matters said the policy “also puts female officers in a humiliating and dangerous position, as they may be pressured to search trans-identified men”.

Read more: NHS must stop trans people being allowed on single-sex wars

Campaigners celebrate outside the Supreme Court in London after terms "woman" and "sex" in the Equality Act refer to a biological woman and biological sex, the Supreme Court has ruled. Picture date: Wednesday April 16, 2025.
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Campaigners celebrated outside the Supreme Court after Wednesday’s ruling. Pic: PA

One of the High Court judges who made Wednesday’s decision, Lord Hodge, said the ruling should not be read as “a triumph of one or more groups in our society at the expense of another”.

Government minister Karin Smyth told Sky News public bodies have been told to look at how equality laws are implemented following the ruling.

She said: “Obviously, public bodies have been asked to look at their own guidance.

“And we will do that very, very carefully.”

But she warned against public bodies making statements “that may alarm people”, telling them to take their time to look at their guidance.

Baroness Kishwer Falkner, chair of the UK’s Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), said the ruling means there is “no confusion” now.

She said the NHS will “have to change” its 2019 policy, which says transgender patients are entitled to be accommodated on single-sex wards matching how they identify.

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IT issue affects flights at Edinburgh Airport

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IT issue affects flights at Edinburgh Airport

All flights were halted at Edinburgh Airport this morning due to an IT issue affecting its air traffic control provider.

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, the airport later announced service had resumed.

Its post read: “Flights have now resumed following the IT issue with our air traffic provider.

“We thank passengers for their patience and understanding.”

But passengers continue to feel the effects.

A Delta Air Lines flight from New York to Edinburgh was diverted to Dublin after going into a holding pattern over the Scottish capital.

And a live arrivals board on the airport’s website showed multiple flights diverted, delayed and cancelled.

Arrivals board at Edinburgh Airport. Pic: Edinburgh Airport
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Arrivals board at Edinburgh Airport. Pic: Edinburgh Airport

Morven McCall and Cody Stevenson, both 19, were due to fly easyJet from Edinburgh to Amsterdam on their first trip away together.

Morven told Sky News: “We literally just got into the airport and as soon as we walked through the door there was an announcement that it had been cancelled.

“I was ill over the summer and had to cancel two holidays already, this was our first time going away together. We are just gutted and stressed.”

Follow live: Latest updates as flights halted

Arrivals at Edinburgh Airport. File pic: PA
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Arrivals at Edinburgh Airport. File pic: PA

One passenger was on a plane when they found out.

They said: “We boarded our flight and pushed back on time for an 8.45 (am) departure, then sat for a while before the pilot told us what was happening.

“He updated us a couple of times, cabin crew are brilliant at handing out water etc, and I’m surprised that everyone appears to be upbeat. But then you do wonder how long for, just been told we’re hoping to be in the air in 20 minutes.”

Another passenger told us: “The first news was from the airport announcement as we were halfway through boarding, saying the airfield was closed due to air traffic control down.

“No one knew what was going on. We’d already been delayed a bit before boarding, with no reason. I suspect problems started about 9am.”

It comes after an earlier announcement that all flights had been halted.

“No flights are currently operating from Edinburgh Airport,” the previous statement said.

“Teams are working on the issue and will resolve as soon as possible.”

There was no timeframe for recovery initially, Sky News learned.

It’s understood by PA that the issue was not linked to today’s Cloudflare outage.

Edinburgh Trams also posted on X, writing: “If you’re travelling with us to @EDI_Airport this morning, please be aware that flights are not currently operating.”

The airport urged passengers to contact their airline for the latest information on flights.

An average of 43,000 passengers per day use the airport, which is served by 37 airlines flying to 155 destinations.

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Teenager fatally hit by car on motorway had been tasered by police, watchdog says

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Teenager fatally hit by car on motorway had been tasered by police, watchdog says

The police watchdog says it is investigating after a teenager who was tasered by an officer on a motorway was fatally hit by a car.

Logan Smith, 18, was being taken to hospital in an ambulance at about 11pm on Sunday when the vehicle stopped on the hard shoulder of the M5 in Somerset.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said the vehicle stopped on the northbound carriageway “due to the concerns of ambulance staff”.

Mr Smith got out of the ambulance near the junction for Weston-super-Mare and “entered the live lanes of the motorway”, the watchdog added.

Police were called and an officer arrived at the scene, with bodycam footage showing the officer discharging their Taser, causing the teenager to fall to the ground.

“Soon afterwards” Mr Smith was struck by a car travelling on the southbound carriageway, the IOPC said.

The watchdog said it was investigating the “actions and decisions taken by Avon and Somerset Police prior to the death of a teenager”.

IOPC Director Derrick Campbell said: “My thoughts and sympathies are with Logan’s family and friends and everyone affected by this shocking and tragic incident. 

“We want to reassure everyone that we will independently investigate all the circumstances surrounding this incident, including the use of a Taser.

“After being notified by the force, we sent our investigators to the police post incident procedure to begin gathering evidence.

“We have taken initial accounts from the officer and ambulance staff involved.

“We met with Logan’s family on Tuesday, to give our condolences, explain our role and to provide some further detail about our investigation, including a Taser being discharged during the incident.

“We will continue to keep them updated and they request that their privacy be respected at such a difficult time.”

The coroner has been informed and formal identification and a post-mortem have taken place.

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Former doctor charged over alleged sexual assaults on 38 patients

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Former doctor charged over alleged sexual assaults on 38 patients

A former doctor has been charged over alleged sexual assaults on 38 patients in his care.

Nathaniel Spencer, 38, has been charged with 15 counts of sexual assault, 17 counts of assault by penetration, nine counts of sexual assault of a child under 13, three counts of assault a child under 13 by penetration and one count of attempted assault by penetration.

It follows a police investigation into alleged sexual offences between 2017 and 2021.

Staffordshire Police said in a statement the charges come after a complex investigation by the Public Protection Unit into sexual offences at the Royal Stoke University Hospital, in Stoke-on-Trent, and Russells Hall Hospital, in Dudley.

North Staffordshire Justice Centre
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North Staffordshire Justice Centre

Ben Samples, deputy chief crown prosecutor for the West Midlands CPS Complex Casework Unit and Serious Violence, Organised Crime and Exploitation Unit, said: “We have decided to prosecute Nathaniel Spencer for a number of serious sexual offences allegedly carried out against patients while he was working as a doctor – including assault by penetration and sexual assault against a child.

“Our prosecutors have worked at length to support a detailed and complex investigation by Staffordshire Police, carefully reviewing the available evidence to establish that there is sufficient evidence to bring the case to trial and that it is in the public interest to pursue criminal proceedings.”

Spencer, from Birmingham, will appear at North Staffordshire Justice Centre on 20 January 2026.

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