The trans-led organisation and the Good Law Project have taken the first step in this urgent legal challenge
BY NIC CROSARA, IMAGE VIA PEXELS
Two months ago, the government closed off access to puberty blockers on the NHS. The policy they set means that trans children seeking new prescriptions will only get access to gender-affirming healthcare if they agree to participate in a research trial that does not at this time exist.
And now, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Victoria Atkins has laid a temporary emergency order banning private healthcare providers from issuing new prescriptions for puberty blockers.
TransActual UK is a national trans-led organisation that was founded back in 2017 in response to increasing press hostility, transphobia and misinformation. And their team are not just sitting back and watching this rollback on trans rights.
On June 4, in partnership with the Good Law Project, TransActual took the first step in an urgent legal challenge against Victoria Atkins’s recent order to ban private healthcare providers from prescribing puberty blockers to young trans people.
They will issue the case in court as soon as possible and will seek an urgent hearing. They are seeking disclosure of the processes which the Department for Health and Social Care went through before introducing the order, as well as asking for clarity on any remaining legal routes to access. If a judicial review is brought forward, this case will seek to quash the ban and all regulations associated with it.
Chay Brown, TransActual’s Director of Healthcare said: “The consequences of this order are draconian and targeted. This ban risks the safety and wellbeing of young trans people, potentially criminalises healthcare providers and makes the UK one of the most restrictive places in the world for trans healthcare, all without having gone through the proper processes required by the law under which the ban was introduced.”
“We believe this will likely lead to further deaths among the trans community, on top of forcing many through a puberty they do not want and will deeply regret.”
What can you do? The Good Law Project has established a crowdfunding page to contribute toward the legal fund for this action. Find out more here.
There is also a general election coming up (4 July 2024). It’s more important than ever that trans voters and our allies have our voices heard on voting day.
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