Diminishing support for the Scottish Government’s plan to reform gender recognition laws shows that blocking those changes was “wise and proportionate”, Michael Gove has said.

The Communities Secretary told MPs on Wednesday that the UK Government had blocked the controversial Gender Recognition Reform (GRR) Bill “with regret”, but had been vindicated by subsequent events.

Appearing before the House of Commons Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee, Mr Gove said the law was now “pretty friendless”.

He said: “At the time there was a fair degree of pushback, but the collapse of both support for, and the case for, that legislation leads me to believe that this was a wise and proportionate intervention to defend women’s spaces, to defend the Equalities Act, and if it is the case that the victor in the current SNP leadership election, whoever that is, as first minister wants to bring forward this legislation, I would be very surprised.”

Leadership candidates Kate Forbes and Ash Regan have already indicated their opposition to the gender recognition Bill.

Ms Regan resigned as a minister in protest against the legislation. Ms Forbes was on maternity leave during the vote, but has since said she would have voted against the law.

Humza Yousaf is the only SNP leadership candidate who voted for the Bill, and he has pledged to fight the Section 35 order blocking the legislation in court.

Ms Forbes has said she would look to amend the Bill, while Ms Regan said she would put it to a citizens’ assembly if there was a desire to do so.

During Wednesday’s committee hearing, Mr Gove also denied that the use of a Section 35 order represented a breakdown in relations between the UK and Scottish Governments.

He said: “I think it was the case that the Scottish Government, for reasons they must answer for, decided on a course of action that was folly.”

Asked whether the Government would take similar action on the beleaguered deposit return scheme, Mr Gove said there were “no plans” to do so.