Claire Coutinho
Main Page: Claire Coutinho (Conservative - East Surrey)Department Debates - View all Claire Coutinho's debates with the Cabinet Office
(1 day, 22 hours ago)
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Claire Coutinho (East Surrey) (Con)
Jennifer Melle, a black nurse with a faultless record, was racially abused by a convicted paedophile for correctly referring to his biological sex in a medical context. She was called the N-word multiple times in her workplace, yet she was the one who was punished by her NHS trust and the Nursing and Midwifery Council. She is still suspended from the job she loves, 18 months later. Does the Secretary of State agree that the dedicated nurses who are being punished for asserting that biological sex is real are facing a gross injustice, and will she meet Jennifer to hear her story?
Bridget Phillipson
No one should face racist abuse or violence in any workplace, and that includes the NHS. As we have also seen with the Sandie Peggie case, coming to decisions on these cases in a timely manner is incredibly important. I hope that the matter the right hon. Lady refers to can be resolved as swiftly as possible. I would, of course, be happy to meet Jennifer to hear her experience.
Claire Coutinho
I appreciate the Secretary of State’s willingness to meet Jennifer.
Does the Secretary of State believe that an eight-year-old child with autism can consent to a medical pathway that will leave them infertile and without sexual function for the rest of their life? If not, will she personally tell the Health Secretary to stop this puberty blocker experiment, which will biologically castrate children?
Bridget Phillipson
We are implementing all the recommendations of the Cass review. Those included establishing a clinical trial, through the PATHWAYS—Puberty Suppression and Transitional Healthcare with Adaptive Youth Services—trial research protocol, which has undergone a thorough, independent review and received all regulatory and ethical approvals. That was a recommendation that Baroness Cass brought forward along with many others, and it is one that we are taking forward.