Lift restrictions on prescribing puberty blockers to trans children.

We want the Government to reverse the restrictions it has introduced relating to the prescription of puberty blockers to children. The Government introduced legislation banning them from being prescribed by the private sector and NHS primary care to under 18s not already taking them.

We believe the ban on puberty blockers has caused untold suffering to trans children in the UK, and the suffering must not be allowed to continue. We think it goes against article 8 of The United Nations Convention On The Rights Of The Child.

Under the convention, children have the right to their own identity – including their name, nationality and family relations. No one should take this away from them, but if this happens, the convention states that state parties must provide assistance and protection so children can quickly get their identity back.

The Government wants trans people and their families to feel safe and accepted in our society, and to be able to live with freedom and dignity. It is also essential that we ensure healthcare provision available to children and young people experiencing gender dysphoria and/or incongruence is safe, evidence-based and clinically appropriate.

These key values are at the heart of the Secretary of State’s decision to introduce an indefinite ban on puberty blocking medicines for new patients, with gender dysphoria and/or incongruence. This came into effect on 1 January 2025 and will be formally reviewed in 2027.

This legislation is available at https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2024/1319/made

The decision to implement this legislation was taken with great care and was informed by multiple strands of evidence, including, but not limited to:

I. The ‘Independent review of gender identity services for children and young people’ (the ‘Cass Review’). Further information can be found at: https://cass.independent-review.uk/

II. Independent expert advice from the Commission on Human Medicines (CHM). Further information can be found at: CHM's report on proposed changes to the availability of puberty blockers - GOV.UK - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/chms-report-on-proposed-changes-to-the-availability-of-puberty-blockers

III. Responses to a targeted consultation to the ‘Proposed changes to the availability of puberty blockers for under 18s’. Further information can be found at: Government's response to the targeted consultation on proposed changes to the availability of puberty blockers - GOV.UK - https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/proposed-changes-to-the-availability-of-puberty-blockers-for-under-18s/outcome/governments-response-to-the-targeted-consultation-on-proposed-changes-to-the-availability-of-puberty-blockers