Tony Blair called for Labour to change its approach during a speech in Kings College London

Labour will lose the “culture war” with the right if it makes transgender rights “our big thing”, Tony Blair has said.

The former prime minister said that Labour needed “complete renewal” if it is to stand any chance of winning power again and warned that the party must not become an “NGO or a pressure group”.

Transgender rights have become central in the Labour leadership contest. Rebecca Long-Bailey and Lisa Nandy signed a pledge card calling for the party to expel “transphobic” members. However, Sir Keir Starmer, the frontrunner, has refused to sign it.

The 12-point pledge card produced by the Labour Campaign for Trans Rights describes some organisations, including Women’s Place UK — a group that campaigns for “safe spaces” for women — as