By Alfie Hiller (Children and Young People Correspondent)
Edited by Ena Saracevic (Social Affairs Editor)
Both Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak have questioned the current system of transgender clinics amid recent reports that found one controversial clinic (the Tavistock Centre) was ‘not safe’ for children. There have been a few stark commonalities in the views expressed by Truss and Sunak in their bid to become the next Prime Minister. Each have raised concerns that they feel many children are being rushed into irreversible decisions. As a result of this, in recent debates, the idea of barring the NHS from administering puberty blockers to those under the age of 18 has been proposed.
The UK law currently states that children under the age of 16 with gender dysphoria can consent to hormone blockers. Questions have been raised about administering hormone blockers for some time. However, in December 2020, three judges in the High Court ruled that it is doubtful that children under the age of 16 are able to consent to treatment with hormone blockers. Following this, in March of 2021, the Family Division of the High Court suggested that tighter safeguarding restrictions should be put into place. Despite this, the December ruling was overturned by the Court of Appeal in September of 2021.
Currently, in the UK, gender identity referrals have been rising significantly across the last ten years. According to official figures from the Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS), as of 2017, over 50 children per week have been referred to clinics across the UK. At the same time, the NHS has reported over 8000 adults a year have been referred to adult gender dysphoria services with that number set to rise dramatically in the future if such bans are pushed through.
Many argue that one’s gender is still fluctuating during this stage, and so those under 18 cannot consent to such irreversible changes. Keira Bell, who began taking hormone blockers at age 16, echoed this as she raised the appeal to the High Court in December 2020. This ended up uncovering many of the damning claims that eventually shut down the controversial Tavistock clinic. By her own admission, Keira was ‘very mentally ill’ when she was referred to the Tavistock clinic and prescribed with puberty blockers. Six years later and after a successful double mastectomy she realised she had made a monumental mistake and believes she would never have made that decision if she hadn’t been reaffirmed as a boy by doctors. Following this - and the subsequent report - the Tavistock Centre was ordered to shut down.
It raises the questions; could gender dysmorphia and related consequences be prevented? And could more individuals be protected if the opportunity to transition is presented at a younger age?
Stonewall, an LGBTQIA+ charity, has released statistics stating that around half of transgender people have considered suicide in the past year. This is evidently a sensitive issue and should be treated as such. Would it be sensible to ban hormone therapy without the suggestion of investment in alternative support? But, is it necessary to protect children from irreversible changes to their bodies? Young people have the right to express themselves and also the right to protection so thus an interesting moral dilemma is posed.
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