Dr Richard Paulson said that now wombs have been successfully transplanted into women born without them, ‘trans women’ – people born biologically male but who have had sex change surgery – will also want a womb transplant.

This would allow them to carry a baby – and there was no scientific reason why it would not happen, he added.

In recent months, there have been reports of ‘trans men’ having babies – women who have had sex change operations to become male, but still have functioning wombs.