News you need, the perspective you won’t find anywhere else. The trans community’s guide to UK news, media and politics and our place in it.

The Trans Agenda

[16 March 2025]

Follow me on Bluesky – @HLeeHurley.substack.com

Just a quick note that there won’t be an edition next weekend as I’ll be away for a few days, relaxing in a bothy by the sea with little-to-no signal (hopefully).

Don’t worry, I’ll still clip the papers when I get back, so that means a bumper double edition the following week.

UK & IRELAND NEWS

GP condemns puberty blocker ban as trans children suffer dangerous consequences [Wales Online]

  • A Welsh GP has condemned the UK’s ban on puberty blockers, warning that trans children are resorting to dangerous methods like buying unregulated drugs or inducing anorexia to halt puberty.

    She argues, correctly, that withholding blockers worsens mental health and forces trans youth into more invasive treatments later. The Compromised Cass Review cited weak evidence for puberty suppression because it ignored all relevant evidence, while this GP, who remained anonymous for reasons that should be obvious, insists the ban is failing a generation, leaving them vulnerable to distress and long-term harm.

Gender critical activists ‘tracked by terrorism unit’

  • A tribunal has heard that Scotland Yard’s counterterrorism unit monitored anti-trans hate groups. Detective Constable Melanie Newman, who is suing the Met for harassment over her gender-critical beliefs, claimed an officer at a training session described “terfs” in derogatory terms. Evidence was also presented that a Met forum viewed anti-trans campaigners as “heavily resourced” and harmful to minorities, with a counterterror officer reportedly agreeing.

    See PAPER REVIEW, Saturday, for the Times’ article on this.

‘What’s wrong with Cass?’ updated

THE PAPERS

It was another somewhat quiet week again with almost the same number of articles printed about trans people as last week (14 v 13).

Of those, the Telegraph alone printed nine, while the Times had four and the Guardian/Observer had none.

The other article was found in the Mail, whose anti-trans output has halved almost every week since the start of February when they were doing eight or nine a week. I have nothing to offer to explain that drop, but I very much doubt it is because they have caught themselves on.

With the IOC selecting their next president on Thursday, and the winner guaranteed to be anti-trans, along with the imminent For Women Scotland ruling, I do not expect next week to be quiet.

11 of the 14 articles were written fully, or in part, by cis men.

They all continue to ignore what Donald Trump’s administration is doing to trans people in the US.

Quoted, mentioned or featured this week: Anna Melamed (x3), Fiona McAnena, Helen Joyce, JK Rowling, Keira Bell, Kellie-Jay Keen, Let Women Speak, Maya Forstater, Melanie Newman (x3), Paul Conrathe, Rose Cross, Sandie Peggie, Sascha Bailey, Sex Matters (x3), Stephanie Davies-Arai, Transgender Trend

Whose bylines were on all these articles? Jonathan Ames (x3), Martin Evans, Daniel Sanderson, Michael Deacon (x3), Fiona Parker, Julia Llewellyn Smith, Sam Merrriman, Liz Harris, Mark Ludlow, Ben Spencer

Spotted or know something you think I should include in the Trans Agenda?

THE PAPERS Monday 10 March – Sunday 16 March

Monday Total: 2

The Guardian [0]
The Times [0]
Daily Mail [0]
Telegraph [2]
Group that said ‘no woman has a penis’ kicked out on women’s day Gender-critical pressure group felt ‘harassed and upset’ after council worker demanded they leave event The Daily Telegraph10 Mar 2025By Martin Evans Crime editor Members of Let Women Speak were asked to leave the event in Darlington at the weekend A COUNCIL worker attempted to evict a group from an International Women’s Day event after they distributed leaflets declaring “no woman has a penis”. The incident occurred on Saturday in Darlington as women gathered at a council-run venue to celebrate the fight for female equality and liberation. Representatives from the gender-critical pressure group, Let Women Speak, attended the function but were told they were not welcome and were even warned the police would be called if they did not leave. The leaflets stated that women do not have penises and men do not have vaginas, and claimed transitioning children is “profound child abuse”. Let Women Speak was just one of a number of groups that had gathered at the venue, Number Forty Skinnergate, which is described as a “safe space for everyone on a night out in Darlington town centre”. But the delegates from the group, which describes itself as a “global women’s rights movement”, were told that they were not welcome at the event because the leaflets breached the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED). A video posted on social media shows a dispute between two members of the group and Andrew Allison, the former Darlington borough council community resilience officer who now runs the venue. In the exchange, he is heard telling the women: “This building is a safe space for all on Friday and Saturday nights, [the] Public Sector Equality Duty, requires us to foster good relations between all groups and this isn’t doing that I’m afraid, so I am going to have to ask you to leave.” One of the delegates countered that the slogans on the leaflet were “statements of fact” or “objective reality”. But Mr Allison said while he was not disputing anything on the leaflet, his role was to ensure the PSED was applied. He said while the venue was advertised as a “safe space”, it was not for those who voiced “those opinions”. The PSED is a law that requires public bodies to promote equality and reduce discrimination. Asked about freedom of speech, Mr Allison replied: “Freedom of speech is fine but as far as Darlington borough council is concerned freedom of speech doesn’t mean thoughtless speech and we have a duty under the Equality Act and unfortunately are going to have to ask you to leave because that doesn’t comply with what we do.” Despite being warned that the police would be called if they did not leave, the Let Women Speak delegates refused and stayed until the event finished at around 3pm. Rose Cross, the North East coordinator for Let Women Speak said the exchange had left members feeling upset and harassed. She told The Telegraph: “There were a number of organisations there representing women’s rights, including sexbased rights and protecting women’s spaces and prisons. The event was open to the public and everyone was welcome to discuss their views. “Mr Allison stormed in, it felt very aggressive. He demanded to speak to the organiser and he talked about protecting safe spaces, but where was our free speech and our safe space? “We felt very harassed, upset and Darlington council are failing women and free speech. We felt discriminated against for being women and for holding perfectly legal views.” Kellie-jay Keen, the founder of Let Women Speak, said it showed how local authorities had been “coerced and manipulated to accept the activist version of rights”. Darlington borough council has been contacted for comment. Article Name:Group that said ‘no woman has a penis’ kicked out on women’s day Publication:The Daily Telegraph Author:By Martin Evans Crime editor Start Page:9 End Page:9
Trans doctors can use lavatories of their choice, says hospital trust The Daily Telegraph10 Mar 2025By Daniel Martin deputy political editor A LONDON hospital trust has told trans employees they can use the lavatories and changing rooms of their choice in a challenge to Wes Streeting. Guy’s and St Thomas’ trust’s new transgender equality policy tells all staff they must refer to everyone by the pronoun of their choice, even if they do not believe in gender ideology. It also advises managers not to disclose the trans status of a doctor or nurse to patients, which campaigners fear may mean patients are not guaranteed intimate care by someone of the same sex. The guidance comes after eight nurses from Darlington took their trust to court after being forced to share a changing room with a biological man who identifies as a woman. The nurses have drawn up proposed NHS guidance, being considered by Mr Streeting, the Health Secretary, under which trans people would not be allowed in women’s showers and changing rooms. The guidance notes there is no “hierarchy” under equality laws and the rights of trans people should not be prioritised over the rights of women. Mr Streeting asked the nurses to send him their proposed guidance as he considers what moves to make. NHS Fife is currently in a legal dispute after Sandie Peggie, a nurse, had to share a changing room with a trans woman. Fiona Mcanena, the director of campaigns at the charity Sex Matters, said: “The leadership of Guy’s and St Thomas’ needs to get a grip, pull this new policy and start again if the trust is to avoid becoming the latest NHS trust to face costly legal action because of reality-denying absurd policies and practices.” The trust’s trans policy, seen by The Telegraph, was drawn up by equalities officers and LGBT members of staff. Controversially, it recognises “non-binary” identities, which are not recognised in law. It sets an aim for all NHS staff in its two hospitals to be trained on “non-binary staff and gender non-conforming identities”. The trust also said it would collect data on the gender staff identify as, but not their biological sex, in defiance of the Government. On toilets and changing rooms, the guidance states: “Facilities: provide access to gender-appropriate facilities. Gender-neutral options will also be made available where possible. “Transgender people are accommodated according to the gender they identify with, rather than sex registered at birth, regardless of where they are on the transition journey.” The guidance states that “everyone is addressed using the names and pronouns that they request at that moment in time”. It adds: “On joining the trust, they should always be referred to by their chosen name and gender identity. If the line manager is aware of their trans status, it is inappropriate for them to disclose that information. “Some people may prefer to be more public about their trans status, but this decision needs to lie with the individual.” The guidance also states that the trust will implement “inclusive recruitment”, which means they will appoint the most suitable candidates regardless of “gender, sexual orientation, marital or civil partnership status, disability, race, age, religion or belief, pregnancy or maternity or gender reassignment”. That includes eight of the nine protected characteristics under the Equality Act. The one that is missing is “sex”. The document also states: “Support the creation and promotion of training for all staff on LGBT+ inclusion, with specific modules on transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming identities as part of the trust LGBT+ inclusivity programme.” A spokesman for Guy’s and St Thomas’ said: “Transgender staff, like all our staff, deserve to be treated with kindness and respect in line with our Trust values. As an inclusive employer, it is important we ensure everyone is supported regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.” Article Name:Trans doctors can use lavatories of their choice, says hospital trust Publication:The Daily Telegraph Author:By Daniel Martin deputy political editor Start Page:9 End Page:9

Tuesday Total: 2

The Guardian [0]
The Times [1]
Campaigner pushes for ban on child cross-sex hormones Jonathan Ames - Legal Editor A prominent former patient of the child gender clinic Gids has applied for a judicial review of the failure to ban NHS cross-sex hormone treatment. Lawyers for Keira Bell, who was put on puberty blockers aged 16 after attending the Gender Identity Development Service at the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust, have issued a High Court claim arguing that the government’s decision to ban puberty blockers for children while allowing cross-sex hormone treatment to continue was “irrational” and therefore “unlawful”. Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, accused Wes Streeting, the health secretary, of “doing nothing to prevent experimental drugs being given to vulnerable teenagers by unscrupulous, unregulated overseas clinics”. Cross-sex hormone therapy changes physical sexual characteristics, while puberty blockers delay the onset of puberty by suppressing the release of hormones. In the judicial review application, Bell and two other claimants argue that the effects of both puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones on children “are profound and often irreversible”. The claim referred to academic research published in January that found more than 10,000 children in England alone had had a gender dysphoria diagnosis. Therefore, said Bell and the other claimants, the decision to allow cross-sex hormone treatment to continue “exposes each of those children . . . to a risk of potentially profound harm”. Stephanie Davies-Arai, from the campaign group Transgender Trend, said the “practical effect” of banning puberty blockers while allowing crosssex hormone treatment was to encourage private providers to prescribe hormones, a “potentially even worse option”, she claimed. The health department said officials were “putting in place additional safeguards to oversee the use of cross-sex hormones”.
Daily Mail [0]
Telegraph [1]
In the US, under the orders of Donald Trump, male criminals who say they identify as women are being removed from women’s prisons, and placed in men’s prisons. The Guardian, for one, seems horrified by what it calls this “sweeping attack on trans rights”. And, unsurprisingly, the criminals themselves agree. Speaking to The Guardian, a trans inmate whose name was given simply as Whitney wailed: “I’m just continuing to be punished for existing.” No, dear. You’re being punished for breaking the law. Just like everyone else in prison. Yes, I’m sure you’d much rather serve your sentence in a prison full of women than in a prison full of men – who wouldn’t? I suspect, however, that most inmates who are female would rather not be surrounded by inmates who are male. Especially at shower time. Here in Britain, of course, we had a row about this very issue two years ago, when it emerged that a trans criminal going by the name of Isla Bryson had been placed in a prison for women. Given that Bryson had been convicted of raping two women – that is, of the old-fashioned, biologically female variety – it felt rather like letting a fox into a henhouse merely because the fox had stuck a couple of feathers behind its ears and announced that it was now a hen, too.
Michael Deacon

Wednesday Total: 2

The Guardian [0]
The Times [0]
Daily Mail [0]
Telegraph [2]
CPR guide says women are ‘people with breasts’ Activists accuse St John Ambulance of ‘misogyny’ after charity issues new guidance on resuscitation The Daily Telegraph12 Mar 2025By Fiona Parker Senior news reporter A guide by St John Ambulance referred to doing CPR on ‘people with breasts’ ST JOHN Ambulance has been accused of “erasing women” after issuing guidance on how to perform CPR on “people with breasts”. Its website stated that it aimed to address the fact that “people with breasts are statistically less likely to receive bystander CPR than men”. However, gender-critical campaigners said a failure to use the word “women” in the guide was “an unfortunate example of misogyny” in “a life-ordeath situation”. The first aid charity is the latest organisation to come under fire for using “gender-neutral language” to be more inclusive of transgender people. The guide, which also explains how to use a defibrillator, advises readers that they should “remove bras or binding” if the casualty is wearing one, to reach their bare chest. “Binders” are a form of underwear usually worn by females as they transition to become males in order to temporarily flatten breasts and create a more masculine appearance. Women’s Rights Network (WRN) posted a screenshot of the webpage’s title on X, writing: “Immediate medical treatment is required for @ Stjohn Ambulance. They’ve developed chronic amnesia and forgotten the word for half the population.” The post provoked a series of responses, with some people pointing out the “double standards” of referring to “men” in the same headline. Cathy Larkman, one of WRN’S directors, told The Telegraph that “from our point of view, this is just another example of misogyny”, adding: “It’s another incident of erasing women.” Some commenters on the X post pointed out that St John Ambulance had run a campaign to tackle gender disparity in CPR. In a separate page, it cited research showing that “a third of Brits are afraid to give CPR to a woman because they are worried about touching breasts”. The text then referred to “women” throughout. Maya Forstater, the chief executive of the charity Sex Matters, said: “It beggars belief that some of the worst offenders when it comes to butchering factual, sex-based language are medical organisations.” A St John Ambulance spokesman said: “According to research, women are less likely than men to receive lifesaving CPR in public because people are afraid to touch breasts. For Interna- tional Women’s Day this week we revisited our CPR bra campaign that focused on saving more women’s lives to remind people of the first aid steps to improve women’s chances of survival. “This reluctance to give CPR affects every ‘body’ with breasts and the CPR guidance on our web pages seeks to convey this important message. We have reviewed the title of the CPR guidance on our website and are improving the wording to ensure it reflects everybody St John seeks to help.” Article Name:CPR guide says women are ‘people with breasts’ Publication:The Daily Telegraph Author:By Fiona Parker Senior news reporter Start Page:8 End Page:8
Police trainer called anti-trans women ‘a bunch of lesbians’ The Daily Telegraph12 Mar 2025By Telegraph Reporter A MET Police training officer called anti-transgender women a “bunch of lesbians”, a tribunal has heard. LGBT+ training officer Sgt Karl Eccott allegedly made the comments in a session with then-trainee Melanie Newman, who is now bringing harassment and direct discrimination claims against the London force. Ms Newman who is a Detective Constable based in the child abuse investigation team, claimed the Met Police had a “hostile environment” for anyone with gender critical opinions. Ms Newman, a former journalist, told the tribunal held in Croydon, south London, she was suing because she had “no other choice”. She went on to list more “symptoms” of what she called an anti-gender critical narrative at the Met. She mentioned the force had invited trans activists to speak who she said were “extremely hostile” to gender critical (GC) people. Eva Echo, an activist, told a 2023 Trans Day of Visibility (TDOV) seminar that trans people needed to be “saved” from gender critical people, who had “warped, twisted views”, Ms Newman claimed. She added: “I saw it not as an isolated offensive incident but as a reflection of institutional discrimination against gender critical people.” Ms Newman, who describes herself as gender critical, a belief in only two sexes, claimed speakers at the event delivered a one-sided “invective” and she “couldn’t believe” what she was hearing. She added: “The impression I had was of someone who deeply loathed GC women. I did not perceive Echo as a woman but as an angry man.” She later complained internally but was told no further action would be taken because Miss Echo was not an employee. Ms Newman added that at one point, the audience at New Scotland Yard “hissed” when the name of Posie Parker, an activist and founder of Let Women Speak, was mentioned. The five-day tribunal continues. Article Name:Police trainer called anti-trans women ‘a bunch of lesbians’ Publication:The Daily Telegraph Author:By Telegraph Reporter Start Page:8 End Page:8

Thursday Total: 2

The Guardian [0]
The Times [1]
Daily Mail [0]
Telegraph [1]
Don’t remove biological women’s rights, just open a trans-only gym The Daily Telegraph13 Mar 2025 By now, even the most naive progressive should have grasped the following uncomfortable truth. Granting rights to trans women all too often entails removing rights from biological women. The latest proof arrived this week, with the appalling row over a women’s gym. Natalee Barnett, the owner of The Girls Spot in London, had announced that the gym is to be “a single-sex space for biological women”. Therefore, no one who is biologically male will be permitted to use it – and yes, that includes males who identify as women. This, she explained, is to ensure her members’ safety. The response was inevitable. Vast numbers of trans activists have bombarded Ms Barnett with the most virulent personal abuse. Not one of them appears to realise that their messages effectively prove Ms Barnett’s point about the importance of female safety. Or, as JK Rowling put it on X: “‘Let us in your gym or we’ll kill you,’ say men who pose no risk to women whatsoever.” She’s right. It’s time to face facts: trans fanatics are growing dangerous. After all, if this is how screamingly enraged they become when a young woman attempts to create just one small all-female space, we can’t afford to ignore it. In any case, their objections are not remotely rational. Trans women have not suddenly been banned from exercising. Across London, and indeed the rest of the country, there are countless gyms open to people of both sexes and every imaginable gender identity. Yet these raging ideologues won’t allow biological women to have even one little gym of their own, just for them? Evidently not. Hence the point I made at the start. If, as the activists’ mantra insists, trans women are women, then biological women must lose the right to female-only gyms. Because all women must be allowed entry – including women who are male. Of course, rather than bellowing at Ms Barnett for opening a female-only gym, the fanatics could have responded by simply opening a trans-only gym. I wonder how many biological women would have angrily protested against that. If I had to guess a number, I’d probably go for zero. But then, I doubt I’ll ever find out whether I’m right, because the fanatics won’t open one. I suspect they’re much happier just screaming at innocent women, instead. Article Name:Don’t remove biological women’s rights, just open a trans-only gym Publication:The Daily Telegraph Start Page:7 End Page:7
Michael Deacon

Friday Total: 4

Saturday Total: 0

The Guardian [0]
The Times [1]
Gender-critical activists ‘tracked by terrorism unit’ Liz Harris, Jonathan Ames - Legal Editor Feminist groups that argue men cannot become women were being monitored by counterterror police, a tribunal has been told. The revelation emerged as part of a claim by a Scotland Yard detective that she suffered discrimination for her so-called gender-critical beliefs while attending two Metropolitan Police training sessions. It has also emerged as part of the legal action that Scotland Yard paid nearly £26,000 for advisory services on gender and race. Melanie Newman, a detective constable who joined the force three years ago, accused an officer who ran one of the courses of referring to “terfs” — an acronym meaning trans-exclusionary radical feminists — as “a bunch of lesbians who wrongly think it is rape if a trans woman has sexual intercourse with a woman without the trans woman revealing their biological sex”. During the hearing in Croydon, south London, an employment tribunal heard evidence relating to a meeting of the force’s trans and non-binary forum that was held in late 2022. One attendee at that meeting was said to have reported that while the “anti-trans movement may not look offensive to the average onlooker” they were “heavily resourced and are damaging to minority groups”. That person was said to have gone on to tell the meeting that a community engagement officer from SO15 — the Met’s counterterrorism command — who was responsible for assessing potential threats from right-wing groups, “echoed” the view that the feminist groups were “extremely smart”. The hearing was also told that Scotland Yard had paid £25,817.14 to Saba Ali, who describes herself as a “distinguished advocate with extensive expertise in addressing intersectionality, cultural abuse, and the complexities marginalised communities face”. Newman, a former journalist, is suing the Metropolitan Police for harassment under equality legislation on the basis of her gender-critical beliefs. The hearing continues.
Daily Mail [1]
Midwife? No, these days she’s a‘lead perinatal practitioner’ Daily Mail15 Mar 2025By Sam Merriman Social Affairs Correspondent Key role: Natalie Quarry and Helen George on Call the Midwife FOR centuries millions of women have had reason to thank midwives for their vital role on one of the most important days of their life. But now it seems they might have been, ahem, labouring under a misapprehension. For apparently the word midwife ‘upholds the patriarchy’ and its use ‘subordinates all who give birth’. This is according to researchers who claim the title is not inclusive of transgender mothers and should be renamed as ‘lead perinatal practitioner’. A fellow of the Royal College of Midwives has written a paper to be treated as a ‘blueprint’ for the role to become more gender-neutral. The research, titled From Midwife To Lead Perinatal Practitioner: A Utopian Vision, refers to a ‘birthing person’ or ‘pregnant body’ instead of a woman and argues a name change is needed as ‘trans and non-binary people increasingly require access to midwifery services’. It adds: ‘The presence of gender-diverse people accessing “maternity” services disrupts such norms, because it forces us to confront how words like “midwife,” “midwifery,” and “maternity” are excluding, for example, of trans and non-binary ‘Subordinates all who give birth’ people. A move away from the title of “Midwife” to “Lead Perinatal Practitioner” would be trailblazing in reducing inequalities through the deconstruction of harmful patriarchal constructs and decolonisation.’ Dr Sally Pezaro, a fellow of the Royal College of Midwives and Nursing and Midwifery Council panel member, and Dr John Pendleton, a midwife and lecturer in midwifery at the University of Northampton, wrote the paper. But critics point out that the title is recognisable to women globally and warn changing it could be damaging. Anna Melamed, midwifery lecturer at the University of the West of England, said: ‘It is women as a sex category who are pregnant and give birth, regardless of how they identify... Midwives are one of the few professions who proudly and clearly stand by and on the side of the woman.’ Helen Joyce, of human rights charity Sex Matters, added: ‘Maternity services are under enough pressure without ideological nonsense being foisted on them.’ Dr Pezaro declined to comment and Dr Pendleton did not respond to a request for comment. Article Name:Midwife? No, these days she’s a‘lead perinatal practitioner’ Publication:Daily Mail Author:By Sam Merriman Social Affairs Correspondent Start Page:35 End Page:35
Telegraph [2]
Way of the World Michael Deacon The Daily Telegraph - Saturday15 Mar 2025 Acouple of years ago, I wrote a column making fun of the NHS trusts that had, in all seriousness, taken to asking male patients if they were pregnant. But now, I fear, the joke is on me. Or so it would seem, looking at the headlines this week on certain newspapers’ websites. “Brit Man Shares Joy at Discovering He’s Pregnant,” trumpeted the Daily Star. “First Man in UK to Fall Pregnant Naturally Reveals He Wants More Kids,” proclaimed the Daily Record. “Inside UK Man’s Pregnancy,” whooped the Mirror. Naturally I couldn’t wait to read about this incredible turn of events. When I was young, the idea that men could become pregnant would have been considered absurd. Literally inconceivable. Yet now, astonishingly, it had actually come to pass. What could possibly explain such a miracle? A few lines into each breathless write-up, the answer was revealed. The subject of the story, it turned out, was a biological female who happens to identify as a man. In the expectant parent’s own words: “I’m just a man who has a vagina.” To be clear: I wish nothing but the very best to this trans gentleman and his partner (a biologically male man who describes himself as gay). I’m sure they’ll make wonderful parents. All the same, I’m not desperately impressed by newspapers choosing to publish headlines like “Man Gets Pregnant”. Whether their journalists are zealous adherents of gender ideology, or just engaged in a cynical pursuit of online clicks, the fact remains that the person giving birth in this case possesses female reproductive organs. And people who possess female reproductive organs have been giving birth throughout the entire history of the human race. Indeed, experts estimate that, in the 300,000 or so years since the emergence of homo sapiens, it’s happened roughly 117 billion times. On the whole, therefore, this story is about as newsworthy as “Man Goes to Lavatory” or “Day Follows Night”. All of which means that, very sadly, I for one am unlikely ever to experience the magic of being pregnant. Still, perhaps it’s for the best. Women always complain that giving birth is extremely painful. But I can’t help suspecting that, if I somehow had to force a nine-pound baby out of my body, the pain would be quite a lot worse. Remarkable, isn’t it. In this country we hardly ever seem to deport foreign criminals. And then, on one of the rare occasions we actually manage to do it, we end up letting the criminal back in again. That’s what’s happened in the case of Samuel Frimpong, a convicted fraudster who was deported to Ghana 12 years ago. Now, we learn, a British immigration judge has allowed him to return to the UK – because Frimpong said that being separated from his two children, who live in Britain, had made him feel depressed. The judge was told that the fraudster’s absence had made the children unhappy, too, because they found it “difficult to explain to others at school” where their father was. So, having weighed up all the arguments, the judge concluded that the deportation order must be revoked, because it constituted an “unjustifiable interference” with the fraudster’s right to a family life. I’m sure Frimpong and his children are delighted by the ruling. But hang on just a moment. If a foreign criminal can use this argument against being deported, why shouldn’t a British criminal use it against being sent to prison? “You can’t possibly jail me for my crimes, Your Honour – because separating me from my children would make me feel terribly depressed. And think how difficult my poor kids would find it to explain to others at school where their father was. It really would constitute an unjustifiable interference with my right to a family life. “And anyway, surely the law’s got to treat British criminals the same as foreign criminals. We wouldn’t want anyone to think we’ve got a two-tier justice system, would we?” Across Europe, sales of Teslas – Elon Musk’s range of flashy electric cars – appear to be plummeting. In January, reports the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, 50 per cent fewer Teslas were sold than in the same month the previous year. Sales are also down in Australia, as well as in California, the biggest US market for electric cars. And, according to Time magazine, the explanation for the slump is simple. Many potential customers are put off by Mr Musk’s political views. If so, they aren’t the first. Back in November 2022, the American actress Alyssa Milano expressed her indignation at Mr Musk’s purchase of Twitter – because, she believed, the social media site was now enabling the spread of “hate and white supremacy”. So she announced that, in protest, she had ditched her Tesla – in favour of an electric VW. To which, I couldn’t help feeling, the only response was: if you think the man behind Tesla is a Nazi, dear, wait till you hear about the man who commissioned the first Volkswagen. Austrian chap. Little black moustache. Bit of a temper. Twitter wasn’t around in his day, but if it had been, I imagine that his tweets would have been fairly problematic, too. Article Name:Way of the World Michael Deacon Publication:The Daily Telegraph - Saturday Start Page:16 End Page:16
Thank God I didn’t change sex, otherwise I’d never be a father The photographer David’s son, who was close to transitioning but is now having a baby with his girlfriend, tells Julia Llewellyn Smith why Britain has got gender all wrong

Sunday Total: 2

The Observer [0]
The Sunday Times [1]
Reopening the case against puberty blockers Children with gender dysphoria will be treated with the banned drugs if a new trial wins ethical approval. What is the science behind them, asks Ben Spencer Opponents of the ban on puberty blockers protest in London last year. Next image › The launch of a clinical trial is usually met with a reaction somewhere between polite indifference and deafening silence. The new Pathways study, however, is not that kind of trial. Last month, NHSfunded scientists announced they were seeking ethical approval to test banned puberty blockers on children with gender incongruence. If regulators give consent — a decision expected in coming weeks — the £10.7 million trial will start by the end of the year. The backlash has been immediate. On one side, some campaigners argue that trialling such risky drugs is unethical, tantamount to treating children as guinea pigs and little more than a loophole for the continued use of outlawed treatments. On the other side, equally vocal campaigners argue that the ban — introduced last May by the Conservative health secretary Victoria Atkins and made indefinite in December by her Labour successor, Wes Streeting — unfairly denies puberty blockers to children struggling with their identity, and risks a surge in suicides among young trans people. Research is all very well, they argue, but not at the cost of routine access to what they claim are safe and proven drugs. Between the two sides, struggling to be heard above the din, are doctors who point out that puberty blockers were banned for routine use precisely because further research is needed. A trial, they argue, is how we find out more. Baroness Cass is the paediatrician whose highly critical review into gender identity services led to the withdrawal of the routine use of blockers and the closure of Gender Identity Development Service (Gids) at the Tavistock Centre in north London. Her 388-page report, published last April, was seen as a vindication for those who felt that the use of puberty blockers was leading to potentially catastrophic outcomes for children. But Cass’s review also recommended a trial, and she is sticking to her guns. She says it is the gulf between the two sides of the debate, together with the dearth of robust evidence about the benefits and harms of the drugs, which makes a trial essential. “In the absence of this evidence, people draw their own conclusions,” Cass says, in her first public comments since the trial was announced. “There are very strongly held but polarised views on the use of these medications, with some people thinking they should be stopped entirely for young people with gender dysphoria, and others arguing they should be much more freely available. Both these positions have some cogent arguments, but the two positions are incompatible. From a clinical research perspective, this is called equipoise. We do need further research to fill some of the evidence gaps, to remove uncertainty for the young people, their families and clinicians.” The atmosphere around this issue is so febrile that the government has already had to see off a judicial review against the puberty blockers ban, brought last year by the campaign group TransActual UK and the Good Law Project, led by the activist lawyer Jolyon Maugham. Now it is being threatened with another. Lawyers for a group campaigning on the other side of the argument, led by a “detransitioned” patient, Keira Bell, and a psychotherapist, James Esses, have threatened a judicial review against the Health Research Authority if it gives ethical approval for the Pathways trial. Puberty blockers are a class of drugs called gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) analogues, which suppress the release of sex hormones such as testosterone and oestrogen. Similar drugs are used to lower hormone levels in breast cancer and prostate cancer patients, and for those with heavy periods or endometriosis. Among boys, they limit the growth of facial and body hair, prevent voice deepening and limit the growth of genitalia. In girls, treatment limits or stops breast development and stops menstruation. At first they were used to temporarily stop puberty in children who started too early, usually before the age of eight, but began to be used for gender dysphoria in the UK in 2011, based on the “Dutch protocol” developed by Peggy Cohen- Kettenis, a psychologist from Utrecht. According to this protocol, blockers were useful for two key reasons. First, they provided a “pause” to the changes that come with puberty, allowing children identifying as transgender “time to think” before making a decision about their future. Second, they were thought to improve the ability of those born as one sex to “pass” as the other sex in later life. The Cass review found this was “particularly important” for boys who become transgender women, “who were able to access puberty blockers before developing facial hair and dropping their voice”. But it also found little evidence these drugs worked to reduce the psychological distress of gender dysphoria. The Tavistock’s initial study, on 44 children given puberty blockers between 2011 and 2014, found no statistically significant improvement in psychological wellbeing. Indeed, some children saw an increase in suffering. An independent review also found there was no evidence of a rise in suicides since puberty-blocking drugs were restricted at the Tavistock. Instead of reporting these negative findings, the study was buried by clinical staff until 2020. Meanwhile, use of the drugs had become routine, as increasing numbers of children were referred to the service. As many as 2,000 children are thought to have been given blockers — as Anna Hutchinson, a senior clinical psychologist at Gids, told the journalist Hannah Barnes: “There were no referral criteria. We were accepting everyone.” The fundamental problem, according to Sir Jonathan Montgomery, professor of healthcare law at University College London and former chairman of the Health Research Authority, is that “these treatments had moved from use in a research context to business-as-usual usage at the Tavistock without proper evaluation of the research data”. But rather than recommending an outright ban, Cass became persuaded during her investigation that a small group might benefit from puberty blockers. A re-analysis of the early Tavistock data found that 9 to 29 per cent of those given the drugs saw a reliable improvement in distress levels, 15 to 34 per cent saw a deterioration and 37 to 70 per cent saw no change. Determining whether some children might benefit, and identifying which fell into that category, was Cass’s main argument for carrying out a trial. Without this certainty, some families with children convinced of their gender dysphoria would continue to seek out the drugs from overseas or on the black market. The researchers at King’s College London, who will lead the trial among patients at new NHS gender dysphoria services in London, Bristol and Liverpool, and possibly another three centres, have decided not to release the study design before it has received final ethical approval. They are also not responding to inquiries. The question at the heart of this debate is whether it is possible for doctors, amid all the politicisation and pressure provoked by this issue, with all the baggage of social media contagion, image problems, overdiagnosis and culture warfare that comes with it, to reliably distinguish between the minority of children who might benefit from blockers and those for whom they could do lasting harm. Dr Hannah Ryan, a specialist registrar in clinical pharmacology at Royal Liverpool University Hospital, is sceptical that it would even be possible to design a good study on the question. “We have no way of predicting which children will persist with gender dysphoria into adulthood and who will simply desist,” says Ryan, a member of the Clinical Advisory Network on Sex and Gender, an increasingly influential group of doctors campaigning against the trial. “Historically, around three quarters will desist without any intervention at all. You could not design inclusion criteria for a trial that would exclude those kids who will just simply grow out of this and not become transgender adults.” Before carrying out a trial, Ryan argues, the NHS should track down the 2,000 or so children treated with puberty blockers at the Tavistock and assess the effects upon them. Cass called for a review of Gids patients but it has proved hard to access medical records. “Before taking risks with children’s health and wellbeing, we are obliged to look at that data,” Ryan says. Sallie Baxendale, professor of clinical neuropsychology at University College London, agrees. Although pausing puberty is temporary, there may be lasting effects. “We currently don’t know what the long-term effects of [interrupting puberty] will be, or whether the brain ever catches up on that period of suspended development,” she says. “A clinical trial looking at the impacts in the short term won’t give us these answers.” 2,000 Number of children treated with blockers at Gids 70% Upper proportion of those on blockers whose distress levels didn’t improve
Mail on Sunday [0]
Sunday Telegraph [1]
Term ‘midwife’ could upset trans people, NHS told The Sunday Telegraph16 Mar 2025By Mark Ludlow THE NHS has been told it should stop using the word “midwife” because it is not inclusive of transgender people. Academics claim in a paper that the term, which has been used since medieval times, is out of date and should be replaced with “lead perinatal practitioner”. Dr John Peddleton, a senior midwifery lecturer from the University of Northampton, and Sally Pezaro, an academic midwife from Coventry University, claim the term “upholds the patriarchy” and “subordinates all who give birth”. They write: “As trans and non-binary people increasingly require access to midwifery services, this paper proposes an alternative professional title that is inclusive and liberates midwives from continuously reinscribing the sex /gender binary in their nomenclature.” Critics branded the proposal “nonsense” and said maternity services were under enough strain already. The research paper, From Midwife to Lead Perinatal Practitioner: A Utopian ‘Term “midwife” upholds rigid understandings of sex and gender in childbearing’ Vision, was published this month in the journal Birth Issues in Perinatal Care. The authors said “midwife” was not flexible enough and “acts as a crucible for the crisis by upholding rigid understandings of sex and gender in childbearing”. They added the term was holding back the profession because it could apply to male or female staff. Dr Pendleton and Dr Pezaro said scrapping the term would “signal a trailblazing contribution towards the eradication of gender inequalities in the reproductive arena by uncoupling the profession from patriarchal oppression inscribed in the sex/gender binary which has hitherto been positioned as the sine qua non of midwifery”. Other academics have dismissed the proposal. “It is women as a sex category who are pregnant and give birth, regardless of how they identify,” Anna Melamed, a midwifery lecturer at the University of the West of England, told the Daily Mail. “Midwives are one of the few professions who proudly and clearly stand by and on the side of women.” Article Name:Term ‘midwife’ could upset trans people, NHS told Publication:The Sunday Telegraph Author:By Mark Ludlow Start Page:9 End Page:9

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