Concerns published on this website about the Welsh Gender Service have been raised in the Welsh Parliament by Natasha Asghar MS. During a plenary session in which the Health and Social Care Minister outlined his priorities for the parliamentary session, Asghar said:
“Recently, there have been some rather concerning revelations about the Welsh Gender Service, which I have written to you about, but it would be remiss of me not to raise this with you here this afternoon. The service is referring between three and four times the number of people for irreversible gender surgeries than the UK average. Not only that, but it does not collect information on the number of patients it recommends for cross-sex hormones. Given these red flags at the gender service, will the Welsh Government launch an independent review into its practices and leadership?“
You can watch Asghar’s question here on X or read the transcript here (par 216). The question was one of a number raised by Asghar in response to the minister’s statement. Whilst the minister did address some of Asghar’s questions, this particular one was ignored.
The written question submitted by Asghar (as reported in Nation.Cymru) was as follows:
“I am writing to you today following an extremely concerning news article about the Welsh Gender Service. The main areas of concern are:
1. Information relating to the number of patients being recommended for cross-sex hormones is seemingly not collected.
2. Figures suggest the clinic is referring between three and four times the number of people for irreversible gender surgeries than the UK average.
3. The service was referred for an independent review in 2024, yet it appears as though this has yet to begin.
These revelations are incredibly concerning and, in my view, warrant a closer inspection. To that end, will you commit to launching a full independent review into the service’s practices and leadership as a matter of urgency?“
As yet there has been no written response.
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