The prime minister has today said that people born male should not compete in female sports.

Speaking to journalists during a hospital visit in Welwyn Garden City, he argued : “I suppose I’d just make a few points: I don’t think that it’s reasonable for kids to be deemed so-called Gillick competent to take decisions about their gender or irreversible treatments that they may have. I think there should be parental involvement at the very least. That’s the first thing.

“Second thing, I don’t think that biological males should be competing in female sporting events,” he outline, adding: “And maybe that’s a controversial thing but it just seems to me to be sensible.

“And I also happen to think that women should have spaces which are – whether it’s in hospitals or prisons or changing rooms or wherever – which are dedicated to women,” he went on.

Johnson also said that while he felt “sad” at the withdrawal of 100 plus of campaign groups from the government’s inaugural LGBT conference schedule for July, he defended plans to legally permit “conversion therapy” for trans people.

He explained: “We will have a ban on gay conversion therapy, which to me is utterly abhorrent.”

“But there are complexities and sensitivities when you move from the area of sexuality to the question of gender. There, I’m afraid, there are things that I think still need to be worked out.

“I’m sorry we haven’t been able to reach agreement with the organisations concerned but that will in no way diminish our determination to tackle prejudice wherever we can.”