UK government should ditch 'unethical' puberty blocker trial - Christian Institute

The lobby group was responding to the decision by Stormont’s health minister Mike Nesbitt to pause the clinical trial into the effects of hormone blockers on children – a key recommendation of a review into gender services in the UK.

The UUP minister’s decision came just a day after his party had backed Northern Ireland’s participation in the trial, following a review of local services by Baroness Hilary Cass. Mr Nesbitt’s paused the trial, citing a legal challenge lodged in the courts in England.

The move has been criticised by his Executive partners from Sinn Fein and Alliance – with the First Minister branding it “disgraceful”.

The health minister said should the trial ultimately be given the green light to proceed by the courts, he would “take the views of Executive colleagues before any potential lifting of the pause”.

His move has been welcomed by the Christian Institute’s Northern Ireland Policy Officer, James Kennedy. He told the News Letter: “We are grateful that the Health Minister has put this cruel experiment on hold. While we don’t know of all the risks involved in puberty-blocking drugs, we do know they can cause irreversible harm.

“They stop children developing alongside their peers, prolong their fears and anxieties, and prevent gender distress from resolving naturally, which it usually does. Almost every child who takes these drugs progresses to taking cross-sex hormones, which have drastic lifelong impacts.

“It’s time for the Westminster Government to heed the growing disquiet over this unethical trial and ditch it altogether.”

Mr Nesbitt’s decision came just days after a review by Baroness Cass welcomed the work his health department had undertaken so far to prepare for participation in the scheme.

The trial would have allowed local children take part in tests to establish the effectiveness of the hormone-blockers on dealing with gender distress.

The drugs block normal physical development, and their use has been backed by Sinn Fein, Alliance and the SDLP in the past – as part of a range of physical interventions for people questioning their sex, described as “gender affirming care”.

Baroness Cass’s original review into the UK’s gender services resulted in a ban on the routine prescription of puberty blockers amid safety concerns.