A GLASGOW venue apologised after an incident of alleged transphobia - but then offended people all over again with a foul-mouthed attack on those who criticised it on social media.

The BLOC+ bar issued a statement apologising for the incident, said it had contacted the Scottish Transgender Alliance for help with staff training - and then laid into its critics, calling them "spittle-caked social justice warriors”.

The problem started when a manager in BLOC+ stopped a transgender man from using the men's toilets, which match his gender identity.

The man, Gray Glitterpunk, was approached by a manager and told to use “the correct bathroom”. Glitterpunk told The National: "I told him I was a trans male. He then said: 'You’re not a man, you’re a woman' and my freaking jaw dropped.”

Glitterpunk said that when he tried to push the issue further the manager in question waved him away and ignored him.The next day, after the event had attracted attention online, the venue took steps to correct the incident.

In a release on their website BLOC+ wrote: “BLOC contacted the customer by telephone early the next day to offer a full apology as well as arranging to meet the individual in person at their first convenience to apologise further, face to face, and look to come to some kind of amicable resolution.

“Going forward, this recent episode has highlighted a need for us, as a business, to consolidate an understanding via our staff on this and related issues.

“Progress, both as a bar and as a society, can only realistically be made through measured, constructive feedback that leads to remedial action and policy. To that end we have also since spoken with the Scottish Transgender Alliance who appreciated our eagerness and are helping us implement a comprehensive staff training scheme to this end.

”But the full response from BLOC+ went on to criticise those who had attacked them on social media, referred to 'spittle-flecked SJWs' - meaning so-called social justice warriors - and highlighted that some members of staff unconnected to the incident had received “a couple of baffling death threats”.

It said: “In no way do we abdicate responsibility for the initial slight, but in no way – whatsoever – are we deserving of the torch-wielding mass-hysteria that has ensued since."It said a 'mob' had given them damaging one-star online reviews and were “targeting their staff” and added: "F**k you and your transparent, self-centered, identity-politics bullshit”.

It added that BLOC+ did not need to apologise to "a small but significant number of malicious, belligerent, virtue-waving crusaders, who need to feel aggrieved at every opportunity, like some kind of Top Trumps of victimhood."

When presented with the full response before it was shared online, Glitterpunk asked that BLOC+ did not publish it, but they did. Glitterpunk said: “The manager in question and I had a really good talk, and I am absolutely certain that he was deeply upset by how hurt I was and that he is committed to reassessing his behaviour and learning more about trans issues and being more open minded in general.” He said without the criticism he would have been happy BLOC+ were taking the right steps.

But he said: "I think that they are not really understanding their accountability. Their response is petulant and offended. It basically says to me 'we fucked up, but it's also all your fault Internet and we are the wounded party here.

He continued: “Honestly, I am pretty offended by their response.”

One commentator responded to BLOC saying that “Warning our fellow trans siblings of possible transphobia in your venue isn't 'unfair'.”When asked if he would go back to the venue, Glitterpunk responded: “I would have after the apology. I won’t after the response.”