Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of waiting times at the Laurels Gender Identity Clinic on patients.

We accept that waiting times for gender services are too long and we are determined to change that.

In line with the Government's aim to bring down waiting lists and improve the care offered to individuals being cared for in gender services, NHS England has increased the number of adult Gender Dysphoria Clinics (GDCs) in England from seven to 12, with the rollout of five new GDCs since July 2020. Both the rollout of these new clinics and the changes being made elsewhere in the service are helping to tackle long waiting times.

Furthermore, through implementation of the NHS Adult Gender Services Review that was chaired by Dr David Levy, NHS England is working to develop waiting-well pilots to provide support to patients, including mental health access and self-management resources.