Four new prisons to be built but space could still run out, minister warns

• Bundling the removal of hereditary peers from the House of Lords with a wholesale revamp of the unelected chamber has been branded “an excuse for no change” at Westminster, PA Media reports. PA says the warning was issued by Labour former Lord Chancellor Lord Falconer of Thoroton in the face of Tory criticism of the plan to boot out bloodline members, which has sparked accusations of broken promises, class war, “guillotines” and “drive-by assassination”. The House of Lords (hereditary peers) bill, which has been through the Commons, will abolish the 92 seats reserved for members of the upper chamber who are there by right of birth. Speaking during an extended second reading debate on the bill, Lord Falconer told peers:

It is said that the removal of the hereditaries should await all the other changes which should occur to this House. History tells us that that is an excuse for no change. The principle is established the hereditaries should go, it is right. It was the only immediate change promised in the manifesto, we should act.

Two government ministers in favour of assisted dying will sit on the 23-member committee set to scrutinise a bill to legalise it, PA Media reports. Care minister Stephen Kinnock and justice minister Sarah Sackman will take a line-by-line look at the proposed legislation alongside voices of opposition including Conservative MP Danny Kruger.

Politco has the full list of MPs on the bill committee in its London Playbook PM briefing.

FOR (with the disclaimer that some are conditional): Bill author and Labour MP Kim Leadbeater …Health Minister Stephen Kinnock …Justice Minister Sarah Sackman … Labour MPs Bambos Charalambous, Marie Tidball, Simon Opher, Jake Richards, Rachel Hopkins and Lewis Atkinson … Tory MPs Kit Malthouse and Neil Shastri-Hurst … Lib Dem MPs Sarah Green and Tom Gordon … and Plaid Cymru’s Westminster Leader Liz Saville-Roberts.

AGAINST: Labour MPs Naz Shah, Juliet Campbell, Daniel Francis, Sojan Joseph, Jack Abbott and Sean Woodcock … Tory MPs Danny Kruger and Rebecca Paul …and Lib Dem MP Sarah Olney.

Keir Starmer has announced an extra £13m for the UN Palestinian relief agency Unrwa after meeting its commissioner-general Philippe Lazzarini.

A Downing Street spokesperson said Lazzarini thanked the prime minister for “the UK’s resolute support for Unrwa” and that “they both agreed that more must be done to protect aid workers in Gaza”.

Shortly after he entered government Starmer resumed UK funding for Unrwa, which had been suspended by the Conservatives after Israel alleged that Unrwa staff were involved in the 7 October attack by Hamas.

In July ministers committed £21m in funding for Unwra, and today Starmer pledged an additional £13m which will come from this year’s aid budget.

“The two reiterated the urgent need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all hostages and an increase of humanitarian aid,” Downing Street said. “They agreed to continue to work together with international partners to strive for peace in the Middle East.”

The Department of Health and Social Care has also published today the results of a consultation it carried out on the proposal to have an indefinite ban on puberty blockers for under-18s with gender incongruence and/or gender dysphoria. There were replies from 51 of the 120 organisations and individuals consulted. Amongst those who replied, 59% were opposed to the proposal and 29% were in favour.

Summarising the responses, DHSC says:

Respondents (whether supporting or opposing the proposal) agreed that there was a limited evidence base to work with (with 41.2% of all respondents sharing this sentiment). On safety, respondents tended to take a different perspective depending on their overall view of the ban. Supporters of the ban questioned the safety and efficacy of puberty blockers, noting the lack of evidence of benefit. Opponents felt that there was a lack of evidence of risk, which might demonstrate that puberty blockers could be considered safe.

Respondents on both sides (43% of all respondents) were of the view that the current emergency order has negatively impacted patients’ mental health, demonstrated through anecdotal evidence.

One third of respondents highlighted that, in their opinion, the emergency ban had mitigated unsafe prescribing. Conversely, just under one third of respondents raised concerns that an indefinite ban may result in some patients substituting banned puberty blockers for alternative medicines, or obtaining puberty blockers in an unregulated market, but did not provide evidence, other than anecdotal, to support claims that individuals were already seeking alternative treatments.

And this is what DHSC said about why it was going ahead with the ban.

Ministers recognise that an indefinite order of this nature is an unusual measure to ensure safe and effective healthcare for children and young people. Ministers hope that, in future, care and prescribing can be managed in accordance with treatment for children and young people in other areas of the health and care system, drawing on a robust evidence base and without the need for legislation.

Unfortunately, as seen in responses to the consultation, there is evidence of persistent unsafe prescribing practices regarding these medicines. Ministers have therefore concluded that legislation to prevent prescribing of GnRH agonists for gender incongruence and/or gender dysphoria in respect of UK private or overseas prescribing is justified to ensure the safety of children and young people.

As set out in the Cass Review, and agreed by CHM, there is a clear lack of clinical evidence for the safety and efficacy of using puberty blockers for gender incongruence and/or dysphoria in under 18s. Additionally 41.2% of all respondents also agreed that there was a limited evidence base upon which to base prescribing decisions.

And here are some comments on Wes Streeting’s puberty blockers decision from people in favour.

This is from Policy Exchange, a centre-right thinktank.

This isfrom Kathleen Stock, the academic and prominent gender-critical feminist.

Thousands have played a role in today’s decision, but am thinking of my friend @cwknews and her organisation @Transgendertrd today. Right from start, she wrote about lack of evidence for puberty blockers and affirmative care, went to every government and Tavistock event going to ask awkward questions, kept conversations with specialists open, produced evidence-based literature for schools, and supported terrified families throughout. She has suffered huge reputational smears from activists, including Stonewall, and never wavered. This is partly her win, I have no doubt.

This is from the Guardian journalist Susanna Rustin.

Hard to sum this up in a tweet but i think the NHS for all its colossal challenges, and significant weaknesses, is a profoundly humane institution(s). And I think the ending of puberty blocker prescriptions for gender- distressed children is a humane decision, with concern for people’s longterm health & wellbeing, and the importance of evidence-based care, at its heart. I also think those who are pushing for the continuation of this treatment should reflect on the global influence, and values, of the highly marketised American healthcare system

Green’s Siân Berry was not the only MP who expressed concern about Wes Streeting’s decision on puberty blockers in the Commons. (See 3.44pm.) While the Commons as a whole was generally supportive, several MPs raised concerns. Here are comments from more of them – all Labour MPs. I’ve taken the quotes from PA Media.

Rachel Taylor raised the case of a school child in her constituency who has developed anorexia in order to stop their period and stop their breasts growing. She said:

I know that one of my constituents will be upset, but will reflect with his mum who has been supporting him. He was referred by his GP when he was in year eight for gender dysphoria, he has still not been seen by a specialist and he’s now in his first year doing his A-levels.

He’s had to endure going through periods, suffering at school with the embarrassment of that. He decided to stop eating and was then diagnosed with anorexia, because that was the only way that he felt he could stop his periods and stop his breasts growing.

These are the kinds of things that trans young people go through day in, day out. Three-and-a-half years later, it’s not good enough that he has still not been seen by a medical professional.

Streeting said waits like this were “unacceptable and unjustifiable”.

Alex Sobel asked if the ban on puberty blockers for would cover all under-18s, or just those with gender dysphoria? He said if if did not cover everyone, it would be used “as an attack on trans young people”.

Streeting replied: “This order relates to the use of puberty blockers for this particular group of patients, for this particular purpose where the evidence base is not sound, and where the Commission on Human Medicines described the current proscribing environment as representing an unacceptable safety risk. Puberty blockers are safe and proven for use amongst children and young people for other conditions, including precocious puberty.”

Kate Osborne, said:

These restrictions on puberty blockers removes the clinical expertise from medical decision making, and significantly impacts young trans people and their families, and I’m hugely disappointed to hear the contents of this statement today.

Nadia Whittome said:

I share the deep disappointment that many young trans people and their families will feel about the health secretary’s decision today, I know that many will be devastated by this news.

Too many young trans people are already in or at high risk of mental health crisis, what consideration has the secretary of state given to the impact of this decision on their mental health?

Streeting replied that he had given “very heavy consideration” to this issue. He also pointed to Louis Appleby’s findings that data does not support the claim that there has been a large number of suicides following restrictions on puberty blockers.

Peter Swallow asked for an assurance that “nobody currently receiving treatment from puberty blockers, however they may have accessed those in the past, will face a discontinuity in their care”.

Streeting replied: “Any young person in Great Britain and Northern Ireland who had a valid prescription for these medicines in the six months prior to 3rd of June and 27th of August respectively, can seek continuation of their prescription from a UK-registered clinician.”

Stormont’s health minister Mike Nesbitt said executive agreement had been reached on the progression of legislation to include Northern Ireland in a UK ban on puberty blockers for children with gender dysphoria, PA Media reports. PA says:

Nesbitt said young people in Northern Ireland will have “equitable access” to NHS trials to determine the safety and effectiveness of puberty blocker drugs.

The UK’s goverment’s health department said the Commission on Human Medicines had published independent expert advice that there is “currently an unacceptable safety risk in the continued prescription of puberty blockers to children”. The department said the commission had recommended indefinite restrictions while work is carried out to ensure the safety of children and young people.

While health is a devolved matter, the ban applies across the UK.

In a statement to MLAs, Nesbitt confirmed the step had been taken following agreement with the devolved powersharing executive.

In the Commons the Green MP Siân Berry also criticised Wes Streeting’s decision, although not as aggresively as the deputy leader Zak Polanski (who called it a culture war move – see 3.14pm.) She told Streeting:

I’m extremely worried and fearful about this decision to continue this blanket ban. I want to ask the minister about his reliance for the terms of reference and reasons for this on the purpose for which these drugs are being prescribed – ie being trans. [They can be] safely used by young people for other conditions, as he acknowledges, does he understand that this is at heart discriminatory?

In response, Streeting said he did not agree. He went on:

There are a whole range of medicines that are prescribed for a whole range of uses, among a whole range of patient cohorts, but may well be unsafe or inappropriate or ineffective for use for other patients with other conditions.

That is a basic fact of medicine. And if I may say so, her intervention is why we should listen to clinicians, not politicians.

Zack Polanski, deputy leader of the Green party in England and Wales, has criticised Wes Streeting’s decision on puberty blockers. He posted this on Bluesky.

Wes Streetings decision to ban puberty blockers should be called out for what it is.

He’s playing culture wars where trans & non binary youth are collateral damage & Labour dance to Reforms tune.

An attack on trans people is an attack on our LGBTQ+ community. We must say no.

And Patrick Harvie, co-leader of the Scottish Greens, has posted a message agreeing.

Absolutely, and for Streeting to impose this on the Scottish NHS adds insult to injury. If the Scottish Government are to have any credibility they must challenge this – both as bad policy and as over-reach by the UK Government.

In her Commons statement on immigration, Yvette Cooper, the home secretary, said the government would be monitoring the situation in Syria before deciding whether or not to lift the pause on asylum applications from Syrians.

She told MPs:

Let’s be clear, most of the claims, many of the claims that have been made, have been made against the Assad regime for asylum, which is clearly not in place.

It would therefore not be appropriate to be granting asylum decisions on those cases in the current circumstances.

We do need to monitor the evolving situation so that we can get new country guidance in place and so that we can take those decisions, but we will do that in a sensible and serious way, which is about getting the asylum and the immigration systems back in control.

And in a later answer she said:

There’s a lot we simply do not know about how events are going to play out in Syria.

Those who have taken over and who are involved in the initial overthrow of the Assad regime have said, initially, that they would pursue an approach which supported minorities, for example, within Syria, but of course we have seen further developments in recent days that raise questions about that and we’ve also just seen the huge instability with different organisations and groups operating across the country.

That is why we need to monitor this closely, I think everybody wants to see greater stability. We’ve also seen the initial signs of people wanting to return from Turkey to Syria, for example, in the first few days. But this is very unstable at the moment and that is why we need to approach this with care and monitoring the detail of what is happening.

Some local Conservative and Reform UK party branches have held talks about unofficial pacts ahead of the local elections next year, Alex Wickham and Lucy White report in a story for Bloomberg. They say:

The discussions have focused on the idea that local Conservative associations could stand down candidates in some districts to give Reform — led by Brexit campaigner and Donald Trump supporter Nigel Farage — a better chance of defeating Labour, people familiar with the matter said. Reform would reciprocate in seats where the Tories stood a better chance, they said.

The talks have taken place in several areas across the country, the people said on condition of anonymity, to discuss a plan that is not endorsed by party managers. Both the Conservative party and Reform UK have officially said they are opposed to any formal electoral pact.

Back in the Commons, Wes Streeting, the health secretary, said there are more than 6,200 children and young people on waiting lists in England for gender services. He told MPs:

To give people a sense of the challenge, at the latest figures show 6,237 children and young people on waiting lists for gender services. As in common with all NHS waiting lists, I want to see those fall.

And in reference to a plan for up to eight new regional centres for children and young people, Streeting said: “We want all of these regional centres to be up and running by 2026 and we’re working with NHS England to achieve that outcome.”

Streeting was responding to a question from Helen Morgan, the Liberal Democrats’ health spokesperson. Morgan said:

For too long, children and young people who are struggling with their gender identity have been badly let down by a low standard of care, exceptionally long waiting lists and an increasingly toxic public debate.

This is from Adam Bienkov from Byline Times, who was at the Tory post-PMQs briefing. He posted on Bluesky.

Kemi Badenoch’s spokesman condemns Keir Starmer for not introducing “a strict numerical cap” on immigration, only to then repeatedly refuse to say what she believes that strict numerical cap should actually be