Emily Maitlis says her BBC work led to closure of UK's only youth gender clinic

""I remember working with Esme Wren and Hannah Barnes and Deb Cohen and we were looking at the question of the Tavistock," she said. "This was the only gender identity development service for the under-16s. "We questioned why it wasn't data led, why it seemed to be so arbitrary with the kind of recommendations and advice and even the [puberty] blockers they were handing out to young people. "The work we did actually led to the closure of the Tavistock.""

"Segments aired on the late-night news programme before Maitlis' departure in 2021 included a 12-minute investigative report in June 2020 that highlighted concerns that GIDS' patients were going through the clinical pathway ' too quickly'. However, the Care Quality Commission said patients were waiting up to two years for a first appointment. As of August 2025, the Tavistock's adult gender identity clinic (GIC) was seeing patients referred in March 2020 - three months before the Newsnight segment aired."

Criticism of puberty blocker prescribing and arbitrary decision-making at the Tavistock and Portman’s Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS) preceded its closure after the Cass Report. Investigative segments on Newsnight in June 2020 questioned the speed of the clinical pathway and the nature of recommendations, including prescribing puberty blockers to young people. The Care Quality Commission reported patients waiting up to two years for a first appointment. By August 2025 the Tavistock’s adult gender identity clinic was still seeing referrals from March 2020. The controversy formed part of a wider debate about ideological capture and media scrutiny of trans youth healthcare.

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