Cass Review

Marsha De Cordova Excerpts

Monday 15th April 2024 Commons Chamber

[Victoria Atkins]

I thank my hon. Friend and near neighbour for that. She is right, as is my hon. Friend the Member for Stone (Sir William Cash), to emphasise that this is about not just the debate within the NHS, but what happens online. I know that parents of children affected by this are very aware of the online “grooming”, as they describe it, of children on social media. I do not want to trespass for the time being on the regulators—we have already had some constructive conversations with them—but the will of the House is clear that we expect the report to be followed and clinicians to act on the basis of that evidence.

[Marsha De Cordova (Battersea) (Lab)]

Let me start by saying that I welcome the Cass review’s findings, which make it clear that clinical services must be led by good-quality, robust evidence and highlight the lack and the poor quality of data. We all know the important role that data plays in delivering for patients. So does the Secretary of State agree that the review of adult gender services should take into account the number of patients with mental health challenges, such as depression, anxiety, autism, self-harm, eating disorders and many others? What additional resources will be put in place for mental health provision?

[Victoria Atkins]

I thank the hon. Lady for her thoughtful question, because she rightly lists some of the mental health conditions that both Dr Cass and professionals in this area have realised can be part of the complex needs of children and young people who are asking questions of their identity and about their path in life. On funding, the financial value of the contract last year with the Tavistock was £9.3 million, but for this financial year NHS England has committed some £17.1 million for the two new hubs for gender services. Of course, they will keep this under review as we build up the services across the country in the ways envisaged in the report.