Last Updated on April 23, 2020
The United Kingdom government is set to outlaw gender reassignment or confirmation surgeries for minors as part of reforming Gender Recognition Act set to take place this summer.
Equalities minister Liz Truss made the announcement confirming the intention to prohibit irreversible medical procedures on under-18s suffering from gender dysphoria.
According to Talk Radio, she said: “I believe strongly that adults should have the freedom to lead their lives as they see fit, but I think it’s very important that while people are still developing their decision-making capabilities that we protect them from making those irreversible decisions.”
In the UK, minors are allowed to undergo reconstructive surgery if they have parental consent–something which has been a source of controversy in recent years as the child transgender topic becomes a hotly debated topic in media and political circles.
Despite requiring parental consent for medical procedures on their genitals to match their gender, most cases are protracted, delaying the procedure until the patient has legally reached adulthood.
Transgender individuals require a two-year waiting period before being granted reconstructive surgery. A review from a specialist panel is also required to be undertaken before the surgery can take place.
Before the coronavirus lockdowns began dominating headlines, several stories relating to transgenderism in minors had arisen from the UK in particular.
A bizarre story involving a medical error saw a transgender man have his vagina removed by cosmetic surgeons during the “bottom” procedure.
Some states in America are in the process of banning gender reassignment procedures to minor patients.
Hungary saw the opportunity in the coronavirus to end legal recognition of transgender individuals, making it almost impossible to legally alter their sex on legal documents.
Poland, currently without any coherent sex ed curriculum, is pressing to criminalize teachers who give their students sex ed classes, with up to 5-year prison terms for anybody found guilty.
