Britain’s Court of Appeal has overturned a High Court ruling which limited the use of puberty-blocking drugs for children. The High Court ruled in December 2020 that children under the age of 16 lacked capacity to give informed consent to medical treatment which delays the onset of puberty. The ruling said it was “highly unlikely” that a child aged 13 or under would be able to consent to the hormone-blocking treatment, and that it was “very doubtful” that a child of 14 or 15 would understand the long-term consequences. But in a judgment on Friday, the Court of Appeal said that it was “inappropriate” for the High Court to have given the guidance, and that it is up to doctors to “exercise their judgment” about whether their patients can properly consent. The original case was brought by Keira Bell, a 24-year-old woman who began taking puberty blockers when she was …