The point of no return

FOR those of us who have been sounding a cautionary note about the recent rise in young people seeking gender reassignment surgery — 94 in 2010, rising to 2,519 last year — the news this week that no fewer than five clinicians at the only NHS transgender clinic in Britain have quit over fears children as young as three are being misdiagnosed brings no satisfaction. Of course, there will always be genuine cases: no one has ever suggested otherwise.

But if even one young person turns out to have had gender reassignment for reasons other than real need, it will be a tragedy, not just for the individual concerned, but for society as a whole. And one we were warned about.