Not one person at the SNP conference sounded a single word of caution about this. Even Plaid Cymru and the Lib Dems have more of a spine. The party is utterly intellectually adrift.

The lack of evidence to support the 'transgender identity' aspect of the government's conversion practices bill would be risible if the consequences were not so appalling. Let's take what is virtually the opening paragraph of the updated Equality Impact Assessment, which claim "There is growing evidence on the harm associated with conversion practices, including long lasting damage to those who go through it". A footnote is given with 3 references, which an innocent reader might imagine would back up that claim. Two of the references relate to work commissioned by the Government Equalities Office in 2021 to research conversion therapy (which was the term used before the broader concept of 'conversion practices' was adopted). How confident are these researchers that their work offered reliable evidence? In their own words: "Whether or not these experiences constitute ‘conversion therapy’ may depend on the definition, but they were perceived to be so by the interviewees." As for specific examples of 'conversion' on people with a gender identity, the researchers chose to cite cases in therapy such as "looking for ‘causes’ by discussing childhood trauma and family relationships". Yet government officials have repeatedly stated that exploratory therapy of this kind does NOT qualify as 'conversion'. In summary, the 2021 research admits that what is reported as 'conversion' might not qualify as such, and fails to offer any examples of even subjective claims of so-called gender identity conversion that would warrant criminal sanctions. What about the 3rd reference cited in the EqIA? This is a report by the American Psychological Association, which states: "we limited our review to sexual orientation and did not address gender identity". In conclusion: 3 citations, no evidence that could remotely be relied on for the accompanying claim as it relates to (trans)gender identity. And this is the basis for introducing a new criminal offence punishable with up to 5 years in prison.

Many congratulations to @ucl Prof Sallie Baxendale on being shortlisted for the Maddox Prize for standing up for science. 'Baxendale told THE that being shortlisted for the Maddox Prize “isn’t just a personal vindication” given the standing of the prize in the scientific community. “It sends a message that scientific scrutiny is something to be encouraged, rather than feared,” she said. “I sincerely hope this recognition gives others the confidence to speak up, challenge unsupported claims and insist that evidence remains at the heart of decision-making, particularly in the field of gender medicine, but in all areas of medicine, where assumptions and misplaced certainty can have very real consequences for people’s lives.”' timeshighereducation.com/new…