This petition calls for the immediate cancellation of the proposed puberty blockers trial in Northern Ireland and across the entire UK.

The introduction of a clinical trial involving puberty blockers raises profound ethical concerns. It would subject vulnerable children and young people to medical interventions that carry the risk of irreversible physical and psychological harm, under the guise of research, at a time when serious questions remain about safety, effectiveness and long-term outcomes.

Central to this issue is informed consent. Children do not have the capacity to fully understand or consent to interventions that may permanently alter their physical development, fertility, sexual function and long-term mental wellbeing. Proceeding with such a trial represents a serious ethical failure in the duty to protect children from harm.

Northern Ireland must not blindly follow a trial model being pursued elsewhere when evidence remains contested and when growing numbers of clinicians, researchers and individuals harmed by these interventions are urging caution. Children are not experimental subjects, and medicine must be guided by the principle of doing no harm.

We are calling on those responsible for health policy to halt this trial, to listen to those with lived experience, to prioritise compassionate, holistic care, and to ensure that vulnerable young people receive support that does not place them on a lifelong medical pathway.

Protect children. Protect childhood. Stop the puberty blockers trial.