New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has welcomed the Government’s decision to halt any new prescribing of puberty blockers, saying his party had pushed for the change throughout the election campaign.

Peters said New Zealand First was the only party that travelled the country calling for an end to puberty blockers for children, and the announcement delivered on that commitment.

He said it was commonsense to pause the use of the drugs until the results of a clinical trial in the United Kingdom were completed. Peters said the treatment carried uncertainty and potential harm for young people. He said the decision reflected a promise made and a promise kept.

The Government confirmed that Cabinet had agreed to introduce new safeguards on the prescribing of gonadotropin releasing hormone analogues.

Health Minister Simeon Brown said the change ensured families could have confidence that any treatment was clinically sound and in the best interests of young people.

New patients seeking treatment for gender dysphoria or incongruence will no longer be able to access gonadotropin releasing hormone analogues. The change will not affect those already receiving treatment.

Brown said there was a lack of high quality evidence on the benefits or risks of puberty blockers in this context, and the Government was taking a precautionary approach.

He said the medicines would remain available for medical conditions where strong evidence existed, including early onset puberty, endometriosis, and prostate cancer.

Cabinet has agreed that the Ministry of Health will review the prescribing settings once the results of the United Kingdom clinical trial are available. The changes will take effect on 19 December 2025.

The move aligns New Zealand with recent steps taken in the United Kingdom, Finland, Norway, and Sweden.