Nesbitt decision to halt puberty blockers trial is 'disgraceful' - O'Neill

Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) leader Jon Burrows has defended Health Minister Mike Nesbitt's decision to suspend Northern Ireland's participation in a clinical trial to assess the risks and benefits of puberty-blocking drugs in children who question their gender.

Participation in the trial was reported last week in a review of Northern Ireland's gender identity services carried out by Dr Hilary Cass.

However, Nesbitt has now suspended Northern Ireland's participation in the trial.

Burrows said the health minister made the decision "independently", adding: "That's absolutely proper."

In a statement to The News Letter, Nesbitt said: "Having taken account of the ongoing judicial review into the UK government's clinical trial of puberty blockers, I have decided to suspend Northern Ireland's agreement to participate in the UK-wide trial until the legal process has concluded.

"Should the trial ultimately be given the green light to proceed, I shall take the views of executive colleagues before any potential lifting of the pause."

Puberty blockers, also known as puberty suppressing hormones (PSH), are drugs used to delay or prevent puberty happening.

Review of Northern Ireland's gender services

Baroness Cass is a consultant in paediatric disability and a former president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.

The trial will examine the impact of the drugs on their physical, social and emotional well-being.

"That is an independent decision by the health minister, I support the decision he has made," he said.

'No one is forced to be part of the trial'

The Rainbow Project said it "unequivocally condemns" the move.

"The Executive claimed that its ban on puberty blockers was based on evidence: this decision is very clearly based on politics," said Alexa Moore.

"This clinical trial was held up by Executive parties across the board as a means by which to gather the evidence for the use of blockers, assess their safety and efficacy, and make a decision on their use on that basis."

What was Baroness Cass asked to examine?

Baroness Cass was asked to examine whether planned changes to services for young people in Northern Ireland complied with the recommendations from her review in England.

Her review included meetings with staff and users of gender identity services in Northern Ireland.

Baroness Cass' review called for better research into the characteristics of children seeking treatment and to look at outcomes for every young person.

She said that gender identity services for young people in Northern Ireland were helped by referrals coming from Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), which ensured early mental health treatment when needed.

However, some CAMHS staff expressed frustration "that there are children and young people on their caseload who are awaiting the KOI service but cannot access it".

The Knowing Our Identity service provides help to children, young people and their families in relation to gender related problems.

The review contained a number of recommendations but said that clinical practice in Northern Ireland should be aligned with that in England.

Baroness Cass said, though, that the Lifespan model should enable "a much smoother 17-25 year transitional care pathway" from children's to adult services.

What did Mike Nesbitt say about the trial last week?

In a statement last week, Nesbitt thanked Baroness Cass and her team "for taking the time to conduct this assessment during their visit to Northern Ireland in November".

"I hope this report gives assurances that the new Lifespan Gender Service is compliant with Dr Cass' 2024 review, and that the decision to invest in new and additional psychological and psychiatric support is the right approach," he said.