A government report has recommended lifting all age restrictions [1] on children [2] legally identifying as any gender they wish [3], including one that is neither male nor female, so-called ‘gender non-binary’. A simple administrative process would then grant the child a new passport and birth cert with their new officially-recognised, legal gender. It is not clear to what extent puberty blockers will be used by children who change their legal gender in this way.
Minister for Social Protection Regina Doherty [4] brought the review of the 2015 Gender Recognition Act [5] to Cabinet Wednesday and asked that the report be accepted so she may produce legislation in accord with its recommendations [6]. The Minister is said to be hopeful to have that completed and introduced in the Oireachtas in the autumn.
The report recommends that all children under the age of 18 should be allowed to change their gender if they have consent from both parents. It states that courts should only become involved in adjudicating gender recognition applications for children when a parent does not give consent or there is a concern about their mental health.
The report contains a recommendation to produce a straightforward process if the child wishes to reverse that decision at a later stage in their life.