Northern Ireland bans puberty blockers for gender-confused kids

Northern Ireland has agreed to follow the temporary bans on puberty blockers for gender-confused children in place in the rest of the UK.

The emergency legislation – brought in by the last Government – protects under-18s from obtaining the drugs via private prescriptions from the UK or Europe, and was set to expire on 3 September for England, Wales and Scotland.

But the ban has now been extended until 26 November for all of the UK.

Cass Review

Health Minister Mike Nesbitt announced that pending “a long-term solution” informed by the UK clinical trials, Northern Ireland “will cease to be a potential back door to access” puberty blockers.

The Department of Health explained that potential loopholes could have been exploited with the ban not being UK-wide, and that the decision to close them was made in light of the Cass Review’s findings.

The Department stated: “The Cass Review concluded that because of the limited evidence, and potential risks to patient safety with regards neurocognitive development, psychosexual development and longer-term bone health, these medicines should only be offered for this purpose under a research protocol.”

‘Black market’

Writing weeks before the announcement, former First Minister Arlene Foster emphasised that Northern Ireland cannot “become a kind of black market for dangerous puberty blockers”.

Baroness Foster criticised former head of Mermaids Susie Green who boasted that she planned to evade Great Britain’s ban by importing puberty blockers via Northern Ireland.

The Peer stated: “The protection of children must always come first regardless of where they live in the UK.”

In Northern Ireland, puberty blockers are only available to NHS child patients who started the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services Gender Identity Service endocrine pathway before March 2020.