November 2024

Newsletter

Puberty blockers consultation

The big news of the month was, of course, the release after a long delay of the Ministry of Health’s investigation into puberty blockers. Regrettably, the evidence that gave the MOH the confidence to say, “there is insufficient basis to say that puberty blockers are safe or reversible (or not) for use as an intervention for gender dysphoria in adolescents” was not enough to prompt it to immediately retrict their use. Instead, it’s business as usual while a public consultation takes place.

A full report on the MOH’s lack of action is in Yvonne van Dongen’s article on the Platform, The Plot Sickens.

It is unclear why the MOH has opted for a public consultation, given that it already knows there is “… a level of concern both here and overseas about the increasing use of these medicines for the treatment of gender identity issues without sufficient evidence to support their safety and effectiveness both now and in the longer-term.”

You can participate in the public consultation either by completing an online survey, or by sending your submission to pbconsultation@health.govt.nz

The survey is little more than a poll asking whether or not puberty blockers should be regulated, who should be permitted to prescribe them, and what effect any changes might have on people with diagnosed gender dysphoria.

We recommend sending an email if you want to contribute more than ticks in a poll.

Apparently in thrall to “lived experience”, the Ministry has asked for “input from organisations that represent people who may be affected by safety measures or that may be involved in how safety measures are used in practice.”

RGE recommends that your submission contains personal experiences to illustrate the statistical and medical evidence already held by the Ministry and/or to address the gaps in the MOH review as described below by Emeritus professor, Dr Charlotte Paul.

Dr Paul, quoted in Gender Clinic News, while welcoming the consultation, says, “There are limitations to the review, especially a lack of necessary context. There is nothing about the changing aims of treatment, the rapid increase in numbers and change in characteristics of those presenting with gender-related distress, the serious disagreement about reasons for the increase, the possibility that use of blockers locks children into a medical pathway, and legitimate concerns about regret. Still, it is a first step.”

Here are some suggestions for personal experience you might be able to recount in your submission. (The links provided are for relevant studies on the Stats for Gender website.)

Were you a child who wanted to be the opposite sex but were humoured rather than medicated and grew out of gender dysphoria after going through a natural puberty? (https://statsforgender.org/desistance/)

Are you close to someone who has taken puberty blockers and can describe the effects on that person’s physical and mental health? (https://statsforgender.org/category/puberty-blockers/)

Are you a teacher or parent who has observed a social contagion “selling” transition and puberty blockers to young teens? (https://statsforgender.org/category/rogd/) (https://statsforgender.org/category/social-influence/)

Are you a parent who is alarmed by the ease and speed with which puberty blockers were prescribed to your child? (https://statsforgender.org/pre-teens/)

Are you a parent whose child was started on puberty blockers with little attention paid to their other health needs (autism, depression, trauma etc)? (https://statsforgender.org/category/comorbidity/) (https://statsforgender.org/category/mental-health/)

If your child has progressed from puberty blockers to cross-sex hormones, how has that affected his/her fertility, sexual function, and general health? (https://statsforgender.org/category/hormones/)

Do you know someone who has detransitioned (stopped taking puberty blockers or cross-sex hormones) and has been left with irreversible changes to their physical or emotional wellbeing? (https://statsforgender.org/category/detransition/)

The consultation closes on 20 January 2025

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Meanwhile in Alberta

On 31 October, the government in Alberta, Canada, introduced two bills that place restrictions on gender medicine and social transitioning.

Puberty blockers and surgeries

Bill 26 would prohibit health-care professionals from prescribing puberty blockers and hormones to treat gender dysphoria for children aged 15 or under. The bill would allow minors aged 16 and 17 to receive such drugs if they have approval from a parent, physician, and psychologist. There are no restrictions for those aged 18+.

Bill 26 would also prohibit health-care professionals from performing surgeries for the purpose of “gender affirmation” on minors 17 and under. The bill lists 10 surgeries that would be prohibited.

Social transition and sexuality education

Bill 27 would require Alberta’s schools to get parental consent before agreeing to a student’s request to change their preferred name or pronouns. For students aged 16 and up, the school board will only have to notify parents, but not get parental permission.

The bill would also require a school board to get approval from the Minister of Education for any external presenters or resources related to gender identity, sexual orientation, or human sexuality. And the Bill would empower parents to choose whether or not to opt in their child to those lessons.

School boards would be required to provide at least 30 days’ notice prior to instruction, with enough information given for parents to make a decision, and allowing parents the option to opt their child in for all, some, or none of the instruction.

If passed, the legislation is not expected to come into effect until September 2025.

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Surprise! Teaching about gender identity leads to increased transgender identification

A recent article in The Times reports that the Scottish government’s gender-heavy sex education programme has caused huge numbers of children to identify as transgender.

In 2014 the Scottish government introduced its controversial relationships, sexual health and parenthood (RSHP) education programme. Critics are now claiming that there is a direct link between these materials - which include and teach the rhetoric of gender ideology - and the huge rise in Scottish children identifying as trans.

The Scottish government’s report, ‘Cass Review — Implications for Scotland’ was published in July. It records the steep rise in referrals to the Sandyford, Scotland’s child gender clinic, over the last ten years. As of February 2024, there were around 1,100 children under the age of 18 on the waiting list for treatment at the gender clinic.

Dr Jenny Cunningham of the campaign group, Scottish Union for Education, told The Times, “There is no attempt to interrogate why this increase in the rate and quantity of referrals occurred. Where did all these children and young people come from? They came out of Scottish schools. This coincided with the Scottish government’s implementation of its RSHP curriculum for pupils of all ages.” She added, “RSHP introduced the ideas of gender identities and sexuality early on”.

In August 2021 the Scottish government issued its Supporting Transgender Pupils in Schools: Guidance for Scottish Schools which, says Dr Cunningham, is a document full of gender ideology.

Earlier this year, The Telegraph reported on the disturbing extent to which Scottish schools have been captured by gender identity ideology. Campaign group, For Women Scotland, carried out a detailed investigation into Scottish schools, issuing hundreds of FOI (freedom of information) requests. Their findings were quite shocking and demonstrated the extent to which anti-scientific and harmful trans ideology has become ‘deeply embedded’ in Scottish classrooms.

Nine in ten Scottish secondary schools teach pupils that humans have a ‘gender identity’ which can differ from their biological sex. Around 95% of Scottish secondary schools tell children they can ‘self identify’ their own gender and about the same number operate gender self-ID policies, allowing children to choose their ‘gender identity’. As a result, biological males are permitted to use girls’ changing rooms and toilets and to participate in female PE classes and on female sports teams. Furthermore, the report found that only 4% of schools will always tell parents when a child describes feelings of discomfort with their ‘gender’.

For Women Scotland’s full report is available on the website.

This week Tessa White, the Scottish Conservative shadow equalities minister, has spoken out about the teaching of gender ideology in schools. “It is crucial that children are able to attend school without being exposed to potentially damaging ideology. This can be deeply confusing for young people. We must allow children to just be children. The SNP government must ensure that various organisations, including LGBT Youth Scotland, are not left to promote their own brand of ideology on our children.”

(Credit: The Ginner Update - grahamlinehan@substack.com)

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Trump on “transgender insanity”

President-elect Donald Trump plans to cut funding for schools that defy him on a multitude of issues. Throughout his campaign, Trump depicted schools as a political battleground to be won back from the left. Now that he’s won the White House, he plans to use federal money as leverage to advance his vision of education across the nation.

On his first day in office, Trump has said he will cut money to “any school pushing critical race theory, transgender insanity, and other inappropriate racial, sexual or political content on our children.”

Trump’s strongest tool to put schools’ money on the line is his authority to enforce civil rights — the Education Department has the power to cut federal funding to schools and colleges that fail to follow civil rights laws.

The president can’t immediately revoke money from large numbers of districts, but if he targets a few through civil rights inquiries, others are likely to fall in line, said Bob Eitel, president of the conservative Defense of Freedom Institute and an education official during Trump’s first term.

Trump’s threats of severe penalties seem to contradict another of his education pillars — the extraction of the federal government from schools. In closing the Education Department, Trump said he would return “all education work and needs back to the states.” But rather than letting states and schools decide their stance on polarizing issues, Trump is proposing blanket bans that align with his vision.

Watch this space!

(Credit: PB News)

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This is the last newsletter for 2024, unless the ERO review of the RSE Guide is published before the end of the year, as promised.

We hope you enjoy a summer break and we will be back in February 2025.