The Government has been warned by an eminent group of pubic figures that a conversion therapy ban is “unnecessary and will lead to significant, harmful unintended consequences”. Camilla Turner in the Telegraph has more.
A cross-party group of MPs and peers as well as psychiatrists, psychologists, doctors and consultants has written to the Prime Minister to express their “grave concerns” about his proposals.
They warn that such legislation also risks criminalising therapists who do not “unconditionally affirm” a child’s desire to transition.
The previous government had proposed banning conversion therapy but it was never implemented because of concerns that parents, teachers and therapists could be criminalised for questioning a child’s belief that they were born in the wrong body.
Labour has now resurrected these plans, with the Government earlier this month launching a new Office for Equality and Opportunity, stating that one of its “key immediate priorities” will be “delivering a full, trans-inclusive ban on conversion practices”.
The new cross-departmental body will be spearheaded by Annelise Dodds, the Equalities Minister, who has previously vowed to make it easier to change gender.
But the letter’s 140 signatories – which include Graham Stringer, a senior Labour MP, and Dr. David Bell, the former Tavistock Centre governor – warn that if such a ban goes ahead, a “slippery slope towards criminalising parents awaits us”.
They point out the “serious and harmful unintended consequences” of the plans, adding that medical interventions known as “gender-affirming transition” have been revealed as a “major medical scandal”.
Earlier this year, Dr. Hilary Cass’s landmark report into the treatment of transgender children, advised that under-18s should not be rushed into treatment which they may later regret.
The report by Dr. Cass, a paediatric consultant, called for the “unhurried” care of those under-25 who think they may be transgender, an end to the prescribing of powerful hormone drugs to under-18s and early help for primary school children who want to socially transition.
The letter, organised by James Esses, a campaigner, states that: “Whistleblowers in this field have been vindicated by recent events, such as the final report of the independent Cass Review, the NHS decision to halt the prescription of puberty blockers, the closure of the GIDS gender clinic at the Tavistock, and the revelations contained within the WPATH files, amongst other things.
“Many confused and vulnerable children who medically transitioned through puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones have suffered irreversible developmental issues, physiological damage (such as loss of bone density, infertility and sexual dysfunction) and significant social and relational harms. Those most at risk are children who do not conform to traditional sex stereotypes.”
Worth reading in full.
Stop Press: You can see a list of the letter’s signatories (including my own) here.
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