Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has been criticised by the Sex Matters Campaign Lead, after claiming that teachers "have the right" to request pupils address them with gender-neutral honorifics.

Speaking to GB News, Fiona McAnena warned of the "harmful" and "confusing" impact on children in the classroom.

When asked whether teachers would be able to ask their students to called them 'Mx', Phillipson said: "I think teachers can make that request. But of course, what we’ll be looking at is making sure that people are able to exercise their views on this topic too."

Fiona McAnena has criticised Bridget Phillipson for backing teachers using 'Mx' pronouns in the classroom

Phillipson's remarks came after a primary school appointed a teacher who identifies as non-binary and asked pupils to use the title "Mx" rather than traditional honorifics.

Criticising the request by the teacher, McAnena told GB News: "It's very confusing for the children, because the person that they're supposed to trust and believe for every minute of the day that they're in the classroom is now implying that she's no longer a woman.

"And so what sounds like something trivial, a title, is actually a very serious problem. Because this is one more way that children are being taught in schools that instead of the basic reality of everyone being either male or female, there's some mystery about it, and we know that this is harmful to them."

Citing the imminent guidance from the Labour Government on such issues, McAnena declared it is "urgently needed" for schools to help navigate them.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson confirmed that official transgender guidance for schools is currently being drawn up

McAnena stated: "I think the guidance that's been awaited from the Department for Education is urgently needed, because what are schools supposed to do when they have a teacher making these demands?

"Are they supposed to accommodate the teacher and say children must respect the teacher, or are they supposed to accommodate reality and say, actually, no, the priorities here are education and safeguarding. And if your identity is that important to you, maybe this isn't for you."

Admitting he is "genuinely puzzled" by the term 'Mx', host Andrew Pierce asked McAnena what the pronoun means.

She responded: "I'm not sure either, but it's hard to keep up, isn't it? Who knows, maybe they've invented a new identity. I think it's a way for someone to say 'don't assume that I'm male or female'.

"Women have fought long and hard not to be dismissed or not to have assumptions made about us because we're female, but the fact is, everybody can see who's a man or a woman. The point is, that shouldn't limit your opportunities.

McAnena told GB News that the Government should be looking at the 'primary focus' of education

"But we shouldn't have to deny reality in order to have opportunities in life and to be teaching children that this is what's important is just getting in the way of proper education and proper safeguarding."

As Andrew argued that it is an "obscure woke issue", McAnena concluded: "I think she may have been caught on the hoof.

"I can't speak for her, but what she really needs to do is think through all the aspects of gender, people's demands, these special demands, and think, what are the implications? What are they saying to children?

"And they need to come right back to the primary focus of education. And then, they'll see there is no room for this sort of nonsense there."