Kirkcaldy MP Melanie Ward backed A&E nurse Sandie Peggie at Westminster as she broke her silence on the NHS Fife trans row tribunal.
The local Labour politician raised the controversy on Thursday.
Ms Peggie, who works at Kirkcaldy’s Victoria Hospital, was suspended by NHS Fife after a female changing room row with transgender doctor Beth Upton.
She said she felt uncomfortable and intimidated by the presence of Dr Upton, born male, in the women’s facilities.
Speaking in the House of Commons, Ms Ward, elected last July, called for a debate on protecting single-sex spaces for women.
Addressing Labour MP Lucy Powell, the leader of the House of Commons, the Fife politician said: “The leader of the house may be aware of the ongoing tribunal case of Sandie Peggie, a nurse at my local hospital in Kirkcaldy.
“Women’s sex-based rights are hard fought and we give them up at our peril.
“Every citizen must be afforded safety, respect, and dignity in the workplace.
‘I support this’
“While the leader of the house may not want to comment on an ongoing tribunal, does she agree with me that single-sex spaces must be protected, and will she make time for a debate on how we can best do this?”
Ms Powell replied: “She’s absolutely right.
“I won’t comment on a particular case, but I absolutely support what she’s saying about the importance of single-sex spaces.
“The Equality Act does apply to Scotland, and it’s very clear that within it, rights and protections for women are protected.”
Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has also expressed his support for Ms Peggie.
Holyrood anger
In a major U-turn, he admitted his party would no longer have supported SNP and Green reforms aimed at making it easier for trans people to self-identify.
Most Labour MSPs backed the Scottish Government’s proposed laws when they first came to Holyrood in 2022.
The reforms were later blocked by the Tories at Westminster.
The tribunal, which started on February 3 and will reconvene in July this year, caused a storm in the Scottish Parliament.
The SNP initially blocked the case from being discussed in Holyrood to the anger of rival Tory MSPs.
John Swinney was later quizzed on the tribunal at First Minister’s Questions as he defended NHS guidance on transgender people’s access to changing rooms.
