LGB Alliance is focusing on TWO KEY ISSUES for this election and has FIVE CRITICAL QUESTIONS for candidates.
OUR KEY ISSUES
ONE: We believe that it is critical to protect children, the majority of whom would grow up to be lesbian, gay or bisexual, from gender-identity ideology.
We know that young people who are LGB are particularly vulnerable to gender-identity ideology and are the most likely to fall victim to those who say that children can be ‘born in the wrong body’.
TWO: We oppose a Conversion Practices Ban that would not protect children and young people but would, instead, seek to criminalise therapists and even parents who ask children why they feel uncomfortable in their own bodies and question whether drugs and surgery are the best options for them.
Our positions are supported by the Cass Review and we have attached a link to the full document, for your reference, at the bottom of the page.
Here are FIVE CRITICAL QUESTIONS to ask candidates on the doorstep.
Question one: Do you recognise that LGB young people are under the most threat from gender-identity ideology which tells them they need to change their bodies?
The Cass Review says: 89% of girls and 81% of boys who were referred to the Gender Identity Services (GIDS) at The Tavistock Clinic said they were same-sex attracted? We believe that LGB young people are being told they have been ‘born in the wrong body’ and that they need drugs and surgery to ‘fix’ them?
Question two: Do you support the NHS policy that has banned the prescription of puberty blockers?
The Cass Review says: “…there is no evidence that puberty blockers improve body image of dysphoria,” Puberty blockers “are not buying time to think” as is often claimed, as the vast majority continue to masculinising/feminising hormones.
Question three: Will you support a similar ban on feminising/masculinising hormones?
The Cass Review says: “There is a lack of high-quality research assessing the outcomes of hormone interventions in adolescents with gender dysphoria/incongruence, and few studies that undertake long-term follow up. No conclusions can be drawn about the effect on gender dysphoria, body satisfaction, psychosocial health, cognitive development, or fertility. Uncertainty remains about the outcomes for height/growth, cardiometabolic and bone health.” We believe it is lesbian, gay and bisexual people who are the most likely to undergo these experimental treatments.
Question four: Do you agree that socially transitioning children in schools is bad for gender-questioning children and for the wider school population?
The Cass Review says: “Social transition is an active intervention” and urges caution. We believe that it is wrong to tell a gender-questioning child the lie that it is possible to change sex, and that it is wrong to compel other children in a school to collude in that lie.
Question five: Will you oppose a Conversion Practices Ban that would not protect LGB young people but which would criminalise therapists and even parents who want to explore why children want to change their bodies?
The Cass Review says: “Throughout the Review, clinicians working with this population have expressed concerns about the interpretation of potential legislation on conversion practices and its impact on the practical challenges in providing professional support to gender-questioning young people. This has left some clinical staff fearful of accepting referrals of these children and young people.” We believe that all children will be negatively impacted if therapists are afraid to act ethically.
If you really want to get the measure of your candidate, and you want to persuade them to take a stand on the issues that matter to us, ask them these additional question too.
- Should lesbians and gay men be allowed to gather without members of the opposite sex present?
- Would you support a clarification of The Equality Act to confirm that sex means biological sex?
- LGB refers to sexual orientation and TQ+ refers to a person’s identity. Would you support a split?
- Do you support the right of lesbian, gay and bisexual people to meet together and have our own organisations and will you meet with LGB Alliance if you are elected?