Family First National Director Lyle Shelton has called for the immediate lifting of conditions imposed by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) and the Medical Board on respected psychiatrist Dr Andrew Amos.
Dr Amos, an academic psychiatrist at James Cook University and Chair of the Queensland Section of Rural Psychiatry with the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists, has reportedly been barred from publicly discussing the evidence base for so-called “gender-affirming care”.
“If AHPRA and the LGBTIQA+ child gender clinics had nothing to fear, they would not need to silence their critics,” Mr Shelton said.
“Gagging a senior psychiatrist for raising evidence-based concerns about irreversible medical interventions on children is not in the public interest.”
Dr Amos has published peer-reviewed critiques questioning whether the gender-affirming model meets core psychiatric standards of assessment and evidence-based practice. His concerns mirror the findings of the 2024 UK Cass Review, which highlighted the weak evidence base for puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones for minors and prompted major policy shifts in parts of Europe.
“AHPRA’s job is to protect the public, not protect an ideology,” Mr Shelton said.
“When regulators punish doctors for participating in scientific debate, public confidence in the medical system is shattered.”
Mr Shelton said the apparent double standard was alarming. In the recent Family Court case Re Devin (2025), Justice Andrew Strum found that expert evidence provided by a prominent gender clinic doctor, Michelle Telfer, was “misleading” and advocate-like rather than objective. Yet complaints reportedly resulted in no meaningful regulatory action.
“At the same time as a court criticises evidence given in support of child gender treatments, AHPRA moves against a psychiatrist who questions the evidence base. Australians are entitled to ask why.”
Mr Shelton said too many politicians have remained silent about what amounts to the greatest medical scandal of our time.
“Children are being placed on life-altering medical pathways involving puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones, despite contested evidence and uncertain long-term outcomes. Where is the courage from our political leaders?”
He also pointed to the ongoing suspension of Queensland doctor Dr Jillian Spencer, who remains sidelined by the LNP Government after raising concerns about practices within child gender services.
“The LNP Government continues to persecute Dr Jillian Spencer for blowing the whistle. Instead of protecting those who speak up for vulnerable children, authorities appear intent on punishing them,” Mr Shelton said.
Family First is calling for:
* The immediate lifting of conditions placed on Dr Andrew Amos.
* A transparent review of regulatory decisions in light of judicial findings.
* A national pause on experimental child gender treatments pending a full, independent inquiry.
“Patient safety and open scientific debate are not optional extras in a democracy,” Mr Shelton said.
“If this model of care is as robust as its advocates claim, it can withstand scrutiny. Silencing dissent only fuels the growing public concern that something has gone terribly wrong.”
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