London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 24, 2025

Javid orders inquiry into NHS gender identity services for under-18s – reports

Javid orders inquiry into NHS gender identity services for under-18s – reports

The health secretary is planning an overhaul of services offered to young people who question their gender identity, the Times reports
An inquiry into the impact on under-18s of NHS treatment for gender dysphoria is to be launched by the UK government, according to reports.

The health secretary, Sajid Javid, is said to be concerned that vulnerable children are being given gender hormone treatment before alternatives have been explored, according to the Times, and is planning an overhaul of services.

It comes after an interim report published last month by the Cass Review, an independent review into the NHS’s gender identity services for children and young people.

The review said services have “evolved rapidly and organically” in response to increased demand, but that that has meant they have “not been subjected to some of the normal quality controls” typically applied to new treatments.

It added that there is a “lack of consensus and open discussion about the nature of gender dysphoria and therefore about the appropriate clinical response”.

The inquiry, now expected to form part of the review, will look at legal changes that would grant it access to an NHS database of people who received hormone treatment as children and later regretted it.

Javid is said to have compared political sensitivities around the treatment of young people with gender dysphoria to those that stymied investigations into the Rotherham grooming gangs, the Times reported.

Asked about the issue in the Commons this week, Javid said the interim findings of the Cass Review had already shown that NHS services “are too narrow … overly affirmative, and in fact … are bordering on ideological”.

“That is why in this emerging area, of course we need to be absolutely sensitive, but we need to make sure that there is holistic care that is provided, that there’s not a one-way street, and that all medical interventions are based on the best clinical evidence,” he said.

There is currently a single specialist service – the Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS), run by the Tavistock and Portman NHS foundation trust – providing gender identity services for children and young people.

The service sees about 2,500 children a year, about 200 of whom are given some form of hormone treatment.

In September, the court of appeal upheld the right of the trust to give puberty-blocking drugs to under-16s judged to be mature enough to give informed consent.

The report noted that a lack of “routine and consistent” data about who is being referred for treatment means it is “not possible to accurately track” outcomes.

A spokesperson for the trust said: “We agree that support should be holistic, based on the best available evidence, and that no assumptions should be made about the right outcome for any given young person.

“At GIDS, we take a young person’s sense of themselves seriously. Some may refer to this approach as ‘affirmative’. However, being respectful of someone’s identity does not preclude exploration.”

The Department of Health and Social Care declined to comment.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
×