Liberal senator’s new bill would ban gender surgery for under-18-year-olds

Liberal Senator Alex Antic has put a private members bill to parliament designed to ban doctors and psychiatrists from engaging in gender therapy with minors. The ban would stop doctors from administrating puberty blockers or conducting gender reassignment surgery, except in very rare circumstances. “So this relates only to under 18s,” he told Sky News host Chris Kenny. “It would set up a regime whereby it would become a matter for the health minister to refer off to the various regulatory bodies. “And there would be consequences for that medical practitioner or healthcare practitioner’s registration. “It’s not designed as criminal sanction but it’s designed to capture that.”