Bristol

Bristol

6 constituencies; 3/29 candidates in Bristol replied to our emails.

Bristol Central – 1/5 candidates replied.

Cara Denyer, Green, 0/4 Yes responses – Georgia replied on Carla’s behalf, “Apologies for the late reply: Carla has been receiving a very large amount of emails so I am responding on her behalf.

It is important to remember that the independent review of gender identity services for children and young people (commonly known as the Cass Review) and reactions to it do not exist in a vacuum. In the UK and beyond, there is a toxic culture war ripping through society and our media which has seen trans people become the subject of anger, hate, fear and misinformation for simply seeking to live their lives in peace. This toxic culture has real world impacts – Carla has seen trans friends and colleagues face prejudice in the workplace, harassment in public, bullying from family members, and huge difficulties accessing the healthcare they need.

Trans healthcare has long needed care and attention so when the Cass Review came out, Carla took time to read the report, and then read widely on what trans people, LGBTIQA+ organisations and practitioners working in transgender healthcare were saying in response to the report.

Carla considers the review to make a number of sensible observations and recommendations, including:

· The harm caused by excessive waiting times.

· The need for more local and regional services which are easier to access.

· More training on working with trans people across the NHS, not just for those working in gender services.

· The importance of listening to children and their families, and treating them as individuals rather than a homogenous group.

However, she notes that it also contains ambiguous language that, depending how it is interpreted, could lead to additional barriers to children and young people trying to access care. For example, it appears to suggest that the NHS might withhold treatment from a young person who has previously sought provision from a private provider. There are substantial issues with young people accessing medicines through private practice (generally a forced choice because of intolerably long waiting lists). However, penalising this behaviour by withholding future NHS treatment is contrary to NHS practice in other areas of medicine. NHS guidance clearly states that you’re still entitled to free care if you choose to pay for additional private care.

Carla has also seen a number of other concerns raised about the risk of unintended consequences of some other recommendations, and decisions about what data were used or excluded.

Overall, Carla feels that the Cass Review is a mixed bag. There is much more analysis that needs to be done, by those with more expertise than Carla or her team. It will take a considerable amount of time for academics to digest and respond to the 388 pages of the final report.

Carla hopes that the Government will very carefully read both the review and the reactions from those with professional and lived experience, to identify where the Cass Review gets it right, and where it needs to be supplemented with other work that fills some of its gaps and shortcomings.

Thousands of young people have not been properly supported by NHS gender services, and have been treated as political footballs, caught up in a toxic debate. This needs to change and Carla hopes that this moment can be the beginning of moving forward.

Separately, Carla has recently signed an open letter about access to gender affirming healthcare for transgender adults on the NHS. The letter was sent to the Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board, which is responsible for commissioning local health services, and is signed by a range of local health professionals and elected representatives. It calls for improvements to waiting times, a pilot local gender service, interventions that might allow for primary care providers to further support gender-affirming services/provisions, and measures to tackle transphobia and ignorance within healthcare services.

With best wishes, Georgia”

Bristol South – 1/5 candidates replied.

Karin, Liberal Democrat, 4/4 Yes responses – She said, “Thank you for contacting me on behalf of Protect and Teach. I full accept the findings of the Cass Review, and I am committed to working to implement its expert recommendations to ensure that young people presenting to the NHS with gender dysphoria are receiving appropriate and high-quality care.

Safeguarding children is one of the most important priorities for a Government, and that is why as your Labour candidate I support Labour’s plans to introduce a new annual review of safeguarding, attendance, and off-rolling in schools.”

Bristol East – 0/4 candidates replied.

Tony Sutcliffe, Liberal Democrat, 4/4 Yes responses – Tony wrote, “Regarding your questions, I can say that I’m happy to answer yes in each case. The Liberal Democrat constitution states that no-one should be “enslaved by poverty, ignorance or conformity”. Children should feel that school is a safe place, where they will not suffer mental or physical abuse. They should feel that they are in an environment where they can flourish, and prepare themselves for an adult life.”

Bristol North West – 0/5 candidates replied.

Filton & Bradley Stoke – 0/5 candidates replied.