A question about what is motivating Gendered intelligence, assisted by Jolyon Maugham and others, to promote the lie that challenging the Tavistock is an assault upon the freedom of children to make choices about medical matters. https://twitter.com/theedwardian81/status/1280090963654959106

I will do my best to explain. If the phrase 'Gillick competence' means nothing to you, I have tried to explain it simply in this post.

https://tinyurl.com/svxgf2z 

TL:DR once upon a time a woman called Mrs Gillick was aghast that her 15 year old might go looking for contraception and be given it. She tried to get the courts to agree this was illegal, as having sex at 15 was. The courts didn't agree.

The court instead held that a child's ability and right to make decisions about his or her own body was something that wasn't necessarily tied to an arbitrary age but that increased with their age and understanding.

The Family Law Reform Act 1969 also makes it clear that any child of 16 or over can make decisions about medical matters as if they were an adult.

So Gillick competence is essentially about the right or ability of a child under 16 to provide consent to medical treatment that without consent could be an unlawful assault. Very little children will have their parents consent for them and that's ok.

but clearly, if an informed and articulate 14 year old has strong views about something, we ought to listen. If that child can show he or she understands the nature and the risks of the treatment or surgery requested, we should be slow to refuse just based on age.

the problem with puberty blockers and cross sex hormones etc - as the NHS now acknowledge - is that its very difficult to be sure ANYONE could offer informed consent to take them as so little is known about their long term impact on children and their growing brains and bodies.

Also, we have got caught on a conveyer belt of 'affirmation' - 'if a child says they are trans, they are trans!' - and no real examination of what the child actually wants. This is what Newsnight showed so horribly clearly about the Tavistock. https://www.transgendertrend.com/bbc-newsnight-tavistock-gids/

A lot of people have a lot invested in keeping the conveyer belt moving. Maybe that's a financial interest? Maybe their professional lives now revolve around supporting 'affirmation' and 'trans rights matter'. Or maybe they are a worried parent, taken in by fake suicide stats.

I can't know their reasons. I only know this. They are so panicked at the thought of the conveyer belt stopping that they will use every trick in the book to keep it going.

that includes threats, intimidation, harassment and now outright lies about the law.

Keira Bell's action against the Tavistock does not threaten Gillick competence. It seeks to protect it.

the hearing is now 7/8th October. We know how important this is because of how angry and dishonest our opponents are now being. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-51676020