Mick Hartley

The BMA is looking increasingly isolated after its call for opposition to the Cass Review has been met with a barrage of criticism from leading doctors – "simply not acceptable" – as well as Seen (Sex Equality and Equity Network), The Association of Clinical Psychologists UK (ACP-UK) and the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges.

Jo Bartosch at UnHerd:

Traditionally, unions are supposed to represent their members. But it is becoming increasingly clear that the BMA is dangerously out of step with the medical consensus. The Cass Review has sent ripples across the world, and from lawsuits in the US to a change of tack across Europe — medics are increasingly acknowledging that what is a crisis in youth mental health cannot be cured by changing bodies.

Had a world leading clinician spent four years investigating childhood diseases or treatments for anxiety, the findings would be accepted without controversy. It is because the Cass Review sought scientific evidence for ideologically rooted treatments that her work has been dismissed by transgender activists, including clinicians like Prof Banfield. It seems so-called “gender medicine” is so mired in identity politics that scrutiny or the application of basic standards is considered a threat.

There can be few things more chilling than a medic on a messianic mission, particularly when one heads an institution as august as the British Medical Association (BMA). The trans trend is finally coming to an end, and if the BMA is to stay relevant, it must move on.