Child gender clinic won’t be shut down

Yousaf told to ‘wise up’ after rejecting closure calls

HUMZA Yousaf yesterday rejected calls to close down the ‘tartan Tavistock’ child gender clinic despite calls to ‘wise up’ by one of his own MPs.

The First Minister said he did not believe there was a case to shut the Sandyford in Glasgow, which is Scotland’s only specialist child gender clinic, despite the closure of the similar Tavistock facility in London.

He also refused to say whether puberty blockers should be banned and claimed the issue is ‘a matter for clinicians’.

But Nationalist MP Joanna Cherry called for the recommendations of the Cass review for NHS England, which found that gender identity services have been based on ‘remarkably weak evidence’, to be implemented in full in Scotland. She warned that failing to do so would harm children and leave the Scottish health service facing expensive medical negligence claims.

It comes as SNP ministers were accused of hiding from scrutiny after requests for them to give a statement to parliament or answer questions on the Cass review were rejected.

Asked on BBC Good Morning Scotland whether puberty blockers should stop being used in Scotland after the ban south of the Border, Mr Yousaf said the Scottish Government will take time to examine the Cass report in detail.

He added: ‘I’m not going to just make a decision on what clinicians should or shouldn’t prescribe, that is a matter for clinicians.

‘But I can say very clearly that the very lengthy, detailed, considered report by Dr Cass is something that is being given the utmost consideration.’

But when asked if one of the options is to close the Sandyford, Mr Yousaf said: ‘I don’t believe there is a case to close the Sandyford.’

In a social media post shortly after his interview, Ms Cherry said: ‘Politicians from all parties calling for a separate Scottish review after the Cass Report are guilty of the most fatuous Scottish exceptionalism. Just how do they suppose it would improve upon this detailed years long process led by a senior clinician?

‘No doubt some hope to pack a Scottish review with the very agenda-led inexpert lobbyists who are responsible for the existing mess.

‘If Cass is not implemented in Scotland, children will continue to be harmed and we will end up with expensive medical negligence suits with damages paid out the public purse. Wise up.’

Another SNP source raised concerns that Mr Yousaf’s BBC interview, including his decision to quote directly from transgender rights group Stonewall’s response, showed the Scottish Government ‘are determined to ignore Cass’.

Scottish Tory deputy leader Meghan Gallacher said: ‘It’s an abdication of leadership not to pause the prescribing of puberty blockers in the interim.’

But demands for a statement from the Scottish Government on the Cass report at Holyrood were rejected.

Ms Gallacher told MSPs: ‘We’ve got a government in hiding, unwilling to address a serious issue in this chamber.’

‘Fatuous Scottish exceptionalism’