A BAN on puberty blockers for children in Britain with gender dysphoria is to be made indefinite after experts warned of an “unacceptable safety risk.”

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) announced the move today, following the publication of independent advice from the Commission on Human Medicines (CHM).

It said the commission had recommended indefinite restrictions while work is done to ensure the safety of children and young people.

The NHS announced in March that children would no longer be prescribed puberty blockers at gender-identity clinics.

This is to help ensure that care is based on evidence and is in the “best interests of the child,” the then Conservative government said.

The following month, the Cass review concluded that studies claiming to show beneficial effects for children and young people with gender dysphoria were of “poor” quality.

NHS England said today’s announcement “closes a loophole that posed a risk to the safety of children and young people.”

The department said the ban applied across Britain and Northern Ireland, despite health being a devolved matter, adding that the decision had been taken in consultation with the Scottish and Welsh governments and in agreement with the Stormont executive.