An emergency ban on puberty blockers introduced by the Conservative government was lawful, the High Court has ruled.
Campaign group TransActual, and a young person who cannot be named, had challenged then health secretary Victoria Atkins’s decision to impose “banning orders” on puberty blockers, which delay puberty by suppressing the natural production of sex hormones.
On Monday, Mrs Justice Lang dismissed the challenges, which had argued the ban on private prescriptions of the drugs to treat under 18s was unlawful.
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The High Court in London heard at a hearing on 12 July that they should not have introduced an emergency ban because secondary legislation already prevents the prescription of puberty blockers from European or private prescribers, and restricts NHS provision within clinical trials.
But, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and the Department of Health in Northern Ireland defended the claim and said the case should be dismissed.
Mrs Justice Lang, dismissing the case, said: “This decision required a complex and multi-factored predictive assessment, involving the application of clinical judgment and the weighing of competing risks and dangers, with which the court should be slow to interfere.”
The emergency ban, effective between 3 June and 3 September, was implemented by the previous Conservative government as its final act on 30 May to “address risks to patient safety”.
They imposed the ban on the basis of the independent Cass Review into gender identity services for children and young people, which found there is “no good evidence on the long-term outcomes of interventions to manage gender-related distress”.
Before the ban, private clinics could prescribe puberty blockers despite them no longer being available on the NHS in England, unless children were participating in a research trial.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: “I welcome the court’s decision today.
“Children’s healthcare must be evidence led. Dr Cass’ review found there was insufficient evidence that puberty blockers are safe and effective for children with gender dysphoria and gender incongruence.
“We must therefore act cautiously and with care when it comes to this vulnerable group of young people.
“I am working with NHS England to improve children’s gender identity services, and to setting up a clinical trial to establish the evidence on puberty blockers.
“I want trans people in our country to feel safe, accepted, and able to live with freedom and dignity.”
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The High Court heard there are concerns the temporary ban could be made permanent by new Labour ministers.
Mr Streeting previously said he was “treading cautiously” in his decision as there was “lots of fear and anxiety”.
He faced criticism from his own Labour colleagues for the decision, with Labour’s LGBT group saying earlier this month they had “concerns” about an indefinite ban.
Source Agencies
