guest of a pr ivate club or association, stating ‘A person has the protected characteristic of
gender reassignment if the person is proposing to undergo, is undergoing or has undergone
a process (or part of a process) for the purpose of reassigning the person's sex by changing
physiological or other attributes of sex.’ 50
Proposed reform to the trans healthcare available in the UK came out in October
2022, detailing that the NHS is considering banning private gender clinics, and contacting the
authorities if an individual is suspected of taking unprescribed HRT, which would result in
being banned from accessing NHS care for transitioning. The draft also proposes limiting
social transition for minors, declaring changing one's clothes or the name they go by ‘an
active interv ention with potential harms’, though gives no explanation as to how non -legal
name change or clothes are under the jurisdiction of healthcare providers or the authorities.
This policy to ban social transition, follows the arguments used by Maya Forstater, founder
of gender- critical ‘Sex Matters’, who claims that ‘gender -distressed children who are not
“affirmed” in their cross - sex identification outgrow those feelings … Common underlying
causes include the stirrings of same-sex attraction, undiagnosed autistic-spectrum disorder,
trauma from sexual abuse.’ 51
Groups like Genspect and Sex Matters often anecdotally cite those who detransition
after regretting their choice, or argue that old statistics on retransition rates are outdated as
many more young people are coming out. However, a recent study that focused on trans
youth in particular, debunked the ‘trans phase’ rhetoric used to argue against gender
50 The National Archives, Equality Act 2010, c. 15, Part 2, Chapter 1, Section 7 <https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/15/section/7> [Accessed 10/01/2023]
51 Helen Joyce, Maya Forstater, ‘Why gender identity should be left out of the ‘conversion therapy’ ban’, (letter to) The Guardian [online] (20 April 2022) <https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/apr/20/why-gender- identity-should-be-left-out-of-the-conversion-therapy-ban> [Accessed 14/01/2023]
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