According to reports, official recommendations for businesses to adopt the recent Supreme Court decision on gender equality may not be published until the current head of the equality watchdog steps down from her position.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) had originally committed to issuing final guidelines by July; however, this timeline may be pushed back due to internal conflicts involving its chair, Baroness Falkner.

In response to the Supreme Court’s ruling in April affirming that sex is determined by biology, the Commission issued temporary instructions stating that transgender women should not have access to women’s facilities.

This protects single-sex spaces in line with the landmark judgment and has wide-ranging implications for workplaces, shops, hospitals and sports clubs.

This position has been reinforced by Baroness Falkner, who has made clear repeatedly that the law as set out in the Supreme Court’s judgment is effective immediately and organisations must follow it.

Last week she told Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour that we are ‘aiming to give our finalised Code to government by the end of July’ and ‘then it’s for government as to when they lay it in Parliament’.

Baroness Falkner, the chairwoman of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission (pictured) has said it was unacceptable for people to question the integrity of Supreme Court justices because they did not agree with the court’s landmark biological sex ruling

However Labour MPs concerned by the Supreme Court ruling and activist EHRC officials have begun openly briefing against Baroness Falkner and have claimed the guidance could be delayed until she is replaced in November.

One MP told the Guardian: ‘The government is frozen and waiting to see what the EHRC says. But I don’t think we’ll get anywhere with Falkner as chair. She’s not neutral.

‘Unless ministers are confident that all voices are being heard they won’t sign off on the guidance, and they are watching this very closely. It’s currently a bit of a mess.’

A number of ‘insiders’ also told the newspaper that the guidance may not be signed off until Baroness Falkner, a crossbench peer, departs the role. Last November she was given a 12-month extension to her four-year term and will leave after this is completed.

However the EHRC said the expected timeframe for issuing its guidance for approval by the Women and Equalities Minister by the end of July ‘remains our position’ and that ‘anything else is just speculation’.

John Kirkpatrick, the EHRC’s chief executive, added: ‘We do not recognise the views attributed to “insiders” as being representative of our staff.’

The Mail previously exposed an apparent plot to oust Baroness Falkner after she was said to have angered the trans lobby

Baroness Falker’s comments since the ‘unambiguous’ Supreme Court judgment are likely to have put her at odds with transgender activists who see the ruling as an attack on trans people.

Earlier this month she wrote: ‘I regret any uncertainty among duty bearers and the public that has been fuelled by misunderstanding and distortion, particularly across social media. The judgment is a model of clarity.

‘The law it sets out is effective immediately. Those with duties under the Equality Act should be following it and taking specialist legal advice where necessary.’

It is not the first time she has faced internal hostility. In 2023 she was cleared of allegations of bullying, discrimination and transphobia by trans activists among her own staff which led to an ‘ideologically motivated witch-hunt’.

The apparent plot to oust Baroness Falkner was fist expose by the Mail after she was said to have angered the trans lobby by defending women’s rights. In October 2023 the EHRC closed the inquiry following the findings of an independent legal review, ordered by then women and equalities minister Kemi Badenoch.

Yesterday campaigning barrister Jolyon Maugham – who has vowed to back a legal challenge against the Supreme Court judgment – said on X: ‘The knives are properly out for Kishwer Falkner and the little clique of culture warriors masquerading as Commissioners she has gathered around her.’

However a spokeswoman from the Labour Women’s Declaration criticised MPs briefing against Baroness Falkner and said it was simply a ‘last gasp attempt’ to muddy the waters and ‘put pressure on the EHRC to fudge or delay’ its guidance.

She told the Mail: ‘These outlier MPs who are trying to roll back the clock neither speak on behalf of the Labour Government, nor on behalf of Labour voters.’

She added that it is ‘very concerning that any MPs would put a target on the back of an official regulator’ and called on the Government to speak up on behalf of the EHRC amid apparent efforts to undermine it.

Helen Joyce, director of advocacy at human rights charity Sex Matters, said that while updating the EHRC’s code of practice is important, the law is already clear following the Supreme Court’s ruling.

She added: ‘Those claiming that the judgment is hard to understand, or that organisations should wait for further guidance, are simply trying to sow confusion where there is none.’