Dear Secretary of State,

We are writing to express our deep concern about the announcement that the ban on puberty blockers for the treatment of gender dysphoria for under-18s will be extended indefinitely.

LGBT+ Labour’s position on this issue remains the same. We worry that a permanent ban on puberty blockers will have a detrimental impact on the mental health of young trans people. Puberty blockers represent an important medication for many children and young people with gender dysphoria both in the UK and the rest of the world, as part of their gender transition. Trans adolescents must now be offered further resources elsewhere to support them.

We believe in evidence-based policy-making, therefore we welcome the commitment that a clinical trial on the effectiveness of puberty blockers by NHS England will begin next year. It is vital that decisions around healthcare, particularly for vulnerable, young people, are robust and evidence-led. However, we are concerned about the lack of information there currently is on these trials.

In light of this decision, we would be grateful if you could set out some additional information on the following questions:

•⁠ What additional mental health support, if any, will be provided to those who were previously using puberty blockers, as well as for those people hoping to do so in the future?

•⁠ ⁠What additional/alternative treatments will be offered by the new service centres for children experiencing gender dysphoria?

• What will the scale of the trial be, and will it be uncapped, similar to the PrEP trials?

•⁠ ⁠When will the trial be completed / when will the results be published?

•⁠ ⁠Would the government consider evidence from other countries where puberty blockers are used?

We would be grateful if you could meet with us as soon as possible to discuss this further.

We look forward to hearing from you in due course.

LGBT+ Labour National Committee