Online porn is inspiring kids to become trans, rising star Tory MP says

ONLINE porn is inspiring kids to become transgender, a rising star Tory MP said today.

Miriam Cates told a Tory Conference fringe event on safeguarding that "trans porn" is leading children into the "trans arena".

The MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge said: "I think the average age that a child sees extreme pornography is 13 now and we just have no idea what impact this is going to have on future society.

"This is anecdotal, but you see an awful lot of trans women, so men, saying it was trans porn that led them into the trans arena.

"So I have no doubt that this kind of extreme, violent and very disturbing pornographic material on the internet has got a lot to do with it."

Ms Cates also called for the Department for Education to make its yet-to-be-published guidance on trans issues in schools legally binding.

Fears are growing among MPs that the PM will kick any new trans laws into the long grass to avoid a damaging Tory civil war.

Long-awaited guidance for teachers on how to deal with kids who want to change their gender was supposed to be published in July but was pulled at the last minute.

Draft guidance revealed by The Sun said that kids would only be allowed to change their gender at school with the permission of parents.

And they would be unable to play competitive sport.

Ms Cates, who accused the Department for Education of having "just closed their eyes" to trans issues, said: "I do think the guidance should be statutory.

"However, even just publishing the guidance, even though there will be schools and activists who ignore it, it's the sort of thing that puts the debate in the public sphere."