A British Medical Association attack on the Cass Review into child gender services was based in part on a blog that lacked scientific credibility, Scotland’s chief medical officer has said.

Sir Gregor Smith said it was striking that Britain’s doctors’ union had now backed away from its call for implementation of the landmark review to be paused, after a backlash from its own members.

In August, the BMA had called for a ban on puberty blockers to be lifted, citing medical and academic concerns about “weaknesses in the methodologies used” by Baroness Cass.

The intervention was leapt on by trans rights activists who have repeatedly attacked the review and in some cases spread disinformation about it.

However, giving evidence to MSPs at Holyrood, Sir Gregor said two evidence papers on which the BMA based its claims had been quickly debunked.