The Christian Institute » News

Ladele appeal judgment expected by Christmas

Sam Wylie — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:02:29 +0000

A Court of Appeal ruling is expected before Christmas in the case of Lillian Ladele – the Christian registrar disciplined for her views on same sex civil partnerships. The appeal was heard on Monday and Tuesday by the Master of the Rolls, Lord Neuberger, and two other Lord Justices of Appeal. It is believed to be [...]

Chief Rabbi: ‘Europe will die by selfish secularism’

Jane Leung — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:14:06 +0000

Europe is a “dying” continent because its secular culture means people are too selfish to marry and have children, warned the Chief Rabbi yesterday. Lord Sacks blamed Europe’s declining population on a culture of “consumerism and instant gratification”. Quoting the famous slogan used by cosmetics company L’Oreal, he criticised Europe as a culture based on [...]

Parents lose sex ed opt-out for kids, 15

Jane Leung — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:07:47 +0000

Parents will lose the right to withdraw their children from sex education lessons when they turn 15, the Children’s Secretary announced yesterday. Should 15-year-olds be forced to have sex education? Listen to The Christian Institute’s Mike Judge debate the issue on BBC News Faith schools will be forced to teach pupils about contraception and homosexuality despite their [...]

Ex BBC head: let atheists break in to religious slot

Sam Wylie — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:06:28 +0000

Lord Birt, a former Director General of the BBC, has said the broadcaster should let atheists muscle in on Radio 4’s Thought for the Day. Critics say that a secular bias already dominates 177 minutes of the Today Programme which carries the three minute Thought for the Day slot. But Lord Birt, who led the BBC [...]

Family stores cord tissue for stem cells

Sam Wylie — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:07:47 +0000

A family from Cheshire have become the first in the UK to store tissue from their son’s umbilical cord which could be used to help cure the family of illnesses in the future. Pro-lifers support the move because, unlike the use of embryonic stem cells, the use of stem cells from cord tissue does not [...]

London march for Sharia abandoned

Sam Wylie — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:33:37 +0000

A proposed London march of Muslim extremists calling for Sharia law to be implemented in the UK has been cancelled for security reasons. Islam4UK was planning to march from the Houses of Parliament to Trafalgar Square. Anjem Choudary, who fronts the group, is also the leader of the radical Islamic sect Al Muhajiroun, and [...]

Hundreds protest at sex swap Jesus play

Sam Wylie — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:38:59 +0000

Hundreds of Christians have held a candlelit protest against a taxpayer-funded Glasgow play which portrays Jesus as a transsexual. Jesus, Queen of Heaven is part of the Glasgay! festival in Scotland, and is advertised as: “Jesus is a transsexual woman. And it is now she walks the earth. “This is a play with music [...]

Sperm and egg created in lab by USA scientists

Sam Wylie — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:30:20 +0000

US scientists claim to have created human eggs and sperm in a laboratory, sparking ethical concerns. Scientists in California used embryonic stem cells to create sperm which were reasonably mature and eggs at an early stage of development. But pro-life groups have expressed concern at the breakthrough which has been described as “unethical”. Scientists at Stanford [...]

PM: we were right to sack Prof Nutt

Sam Wylie — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:03:00 +0000

The Prime Minister, drug experts and parents affected by cannabis have all come out in support of the Government’s decision to sack one of its drug advisers. Professor David Nutt, the former chairman of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), was sacked on Friday after he made comments criticising the Government’s reclassification [...]

Maine voters latest to turn down same-sex marriage

Matt Jess — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 11:02:23 +0000

Maine has become the latest US state to reject same-sex marriage after a “people’s veto” received support from a majority of voters. Proposals to legalise ‘gay marriage’ have now failed in all 31 states in which they have been put to a popular vote. The five states which have legalised same-sex marriage have done so through the [...]

Attempt to weaken sex trade proposal dismissed by Lords

Matt Jess — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:21:24 +0000

The House of Lords last night rejected a final attempt to weaken the Government’s proposed new law to tackle sex trafficking. The Government wants to criminalise anyone paying for sex with a prostitute who is being exploited by someone else, whether or not he knows about her situation. It hopes the proposal, Clause 14 of the [...]

Italians outraged by European Court’s classroom crucifix ban

Matt Jess — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:41:56 +0000

The European Court of Human Rights has caused uproar in Italy by banning crucifixes from the country’s school classrooms. The Court ruled that the practice of hanging crucifixes in classrooms violated parents’ right to educate their children according to their own wishes. It also said crucifixes infringed children’s right to freedom of religion because they could [...]

US abortion boss quits after viewing abortion ultrasound

Matt Jess — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 10:19:57 +0000

The director of an abortion clinic in Texas has quit her job after watching ultrasound footage of an abortion – and joined a pro-life group which protests outside the facility. Watch a US news report Abby Johnson, 29, spent eight years working at the Planned Parenthood centre in Bryan, Texas, two of them as director. Miss Johnson said [...]

Abortion increases risk of depression, study shows

Jane Leung — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:07:47 +0000

Women who have an abortion are at greater risk of suffering from anxiety and depression, according to a new study. Researchers in New Zealand examined the medical history of over 500 women and concluded that those who reported having adverse reactions to a previous abortion were up to 80 per cent more likely to have [...]

Schools’ ‘text for morning- after pill’ scheme expands

Matt Jess — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:44:21 +0000

A scheme encouraging schoolgirls as young as 11 to request the morning-after pill by text message is to be expanded. After an initial trial among six secondary schools, Oxfordshire Primary Care Trust (PCT) hopes to roll out the scheme across the county. The scheme, which allows schoolgirls to text requests for the morning-after pill to a school [...]

Parliament to host its first civil partnership ceremony

Matt Jess — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:43:49 +0000

A gay MP is planning to stage the first civil partnership ceremony within the Westminster Palace estate. Chris Bryant, Minister for Europe and Labour MP for The Rhondda, intends to enter into a civil partnership in March next year and said: “We’d like to do it in Parliament if possible.” There is a 14th Century chapel within [...]

Nutt dismissal: expert backs Govt’s policy on illegal drugs

Matt Jess — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 16:45:23 +0000

In the wake of the sacking of drugs adviser David Nutt, a drug harm expert has spoken out in defence of current drugs law. Home Secretary Alan Johnson sacked Professor Nutt for “crossing the line” between offering advice and “campaigning against” Government decisions. His action has received the backing of a high profile expert on drug harm. Neil [...]

Drugs adviser sacked for ‘campaigning’ against law

Matt Jess — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 16:15:58 +0000

The Government’s chief drugs adviser has been sacked for “crossing the line” into political campaigning against drugs laws. The decision was made by Home Secretary Alan Johnson after Professor David Nutt made headlines for claiming that cannabis and ecstasy were less dangerous than cigarettes and alcohol. Mr Johnson told Prof Nutt that he had “lost confidence” [...]

Church worker fights for life after stabbing

Matt Jess — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 15:53:50 +0000

A volunteer church worker is critically ill in hospital after being stabbed at a church event aimed at keeping teenagers away from crime. The 41-year-old was stabbed repeatedly when he confronted a gang of rowdy youths outside a meeting for young Christians in Deptford, south east London. A 16-year-old boy who stepped in to help him was [...]

A wife is a wife, not a ‘partner’, says judge

Matt Jess — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 15:31:13 +0000

A judge has criticised the practice of referring to a wife as a ‘partner’, saying that it downgrades marriage. Judge George Bathurst-Norman voiced his frustration during a court hearing at Chelmsford Crown Court. When a probation officer’s report referred to the accused’s wife as his ‘partner’ the judge asked: “Why is it the modern idiom believes [...]

Cannabis and ecstasy safer than cigarettes, says Nutt

Matt Jess — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 14:47:59 +0000

The Government’s chief drug adviser has criticised ministers’ decision to reclassify cannabis back to class B. Professor David Nutt, who is chairman of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), also claimed that ecstasy, LSD and cannabis are less dangerous than alcohol and cigarettes. Prof Nutt made his comments in a lecture and briefing [...]

Struck off foster carer case set for High Court

Sam Wylie — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 14:24:19 +0000

A foster carer who was deregistered because she allowed a Muslim girl, 16, to convert to Christianity has been granted leave by the High Court to challenge the decision. The court will begin hearing the case on 3 March next year. The hearing is scheduled to last for three days. Archive: LBC radio (Feb 09) To protect the [...]

Ladele case in Court of Appeal on Monday

Sam Wylie — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 13:14:24 +0000

The case of Lillian Ladele – the Christian registrar threatened with dismissal unless she agreed to perform homosexual civil partnership registrations – is in the Court of Appeal on Monday. BBC News, 19 May 2008 The Christian Institute’s Mike Judge debates the issue with Stonewall’s Derek Munn BBC News, 10 July 2008 Miss Ladele wins her case at [...]

School receptionist tribunal date is set

Sam Wylie — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:49:36 +0000

The case of Jennie Cain, the school receptionist who was disciplined for sending a prayer email, will be heard by an employment tribunal starting on 22 March. Archive: a BBC news report (Feb 09) The hearing will take place in Taunton, Somerset, and is scheduled to last for five days. Lawyers representing Jennie Cain have lodged [...]

Dignitas could be shut down under Swiss law

Sam Wylie — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:02:59 +0000

The Swiss Government has published proposals which could close down controversial suicide centre Dignitas. More than 100 Britons have killed themselves at the Dignitas facility in Zurich. Two options will be presented to the Swiss Parliament, one of which would make assisted suicide centres illegal. The other option is for tighter controls to be placed on suicide organisations. [...]

C4 News calls Pauline Howe’s letter a crime

Mike Judge — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 18:31:33 +0000

Channel 4 News last night called a Christian grandmother who objected to a gay pride parade a criminal on the same spectrum as the killers of a gay man in Trafalgar Square. Watch the remark The case of Pauline Howe, 67, hit the headlines on Sunday because her letter of complaint was investigated by police as a [...]

BNP’s values are not Christian, says Bishop

Jane Leung — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:23:27 +0000

The values held by the British National Party are not Christian, the former Bishop of Rochester has asserted. Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali has warned that the BNP’s “narrow, racist vision” is not in line with Christian traditions. He said: “We must not allow the BNP to hijack the association of ‘Christian’ with ‘Britain’ for its own quite [...]

Another 13-year-old boy to become a dad

Sam Wylie — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 12:23:30 +0000

A boy from Dorset has become the second 13-year-old this month to get his teenage girlfriend pregnant. Earlier this month it was revealed that a boy from Manchester was “chuffed to bits” to be a dad at 13. Now another boy the same age – this time from Dorset – is set to become a father [...]

Gay blood ban to be reviewed

Jane Leung — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 17:15:57 +0000

Fresh attempts are being made to overturn a longstanding safeguard which stops blood donations from men who have engaged in sexual activity with other men. Under current rules a man who has had anal intercourse with another man is not allowed to donate blood because such sexual behaviour is medically dangerous. The National Blood Service (NBS) [...]

Peer’s bid to legalise assisted suicide fails

Jane Leung — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 16:20:54 +0000

An 11th hour bid to legalise assisted suicide failed in the House of Lords last night after the amendment was withdrawn. Lord Alderdice tabled his amendment to the Coroners and Justice Bill last week. It would have allowed the assisted suicide of people with an incurable illness provided they had a signed certificate from a coroner [...]

Three Down’s babies terminated every day

Jane Leung — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 13:03:58 +0000

Three Down’s syndrome babies are aborted every day as the number of Down’s pregnancies increases, according to the Daily Telegraph. Researchers said that nine in ten women who find out they are having a baby with Down’s syndrome opt for a termination. The number of Down’s syndrome pregnancies has risen by more than 70 per [...]

Media outrage over police probe of Christian granny

Mike Judge — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:52:18 +0000

The case of Pauline Howe, the Christian grandmother investigated by police for objecting to a gay pride parade, has provoked strong debate in the media. ITV Anglia News report featuring the Institute’s Mike Judge It featured on ITV’s Anglia News last night with an organiser of the gay pride march supporting the police action because “there are [...]

BNP must not be allowed to hijack faith, says Lord Carey

Sam Wylie — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 17:09:52 +0000

The former Archbishop of Canterbury says that the BNP must not be allowed to hijack Christianity. Lord Carey said all Christians must stand “shoulder-to-shoulder in rejection of Nick Griffin’s notion that ‘Christianity’ has anything to do with his despicable views”. Lord Carey made the comments in light of the BNP leader’s recent appearance on the BBC’s [...]

Video: police quiz Christian pensioner over gay beliefs

Mike Judge — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 10:05:49 +0000

A Christian pensioner was verbally abused at a gay pride parade but when she complained to her local council, the police investigated her for ‘homophobic hatred’. Mrs Howe speaks of her shock at being visited by the police Mrs Pauline Howe, 67, says she was the victim of a number of sexually explicit verbal attacks while she [...]

Lord Waddington: Free speech is not hateful

Sam Wylie — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:13:59 +0000

We risk criminalising the innocent if we remove a free speech shield from the ‘homophobic hatred’ law, a former Home Secretary has said. Lord Waddington, writing for the Guardian website, says “Civil liberty surely implies the freedom to express your own views, and with it a readiness to defend the right of others to express their [...]

Top cop: free speech clause in ‘gay hate’ law is essential

Matt Jess — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:02:15 +0000

Removing free speech protection from a ‘homophobic incitement’ law will put the police in a “virtual straitjacket”, says a former chief constable. Lord Dear, who is also a former HM Inspector of Constabulary, said the free speech protection is “essential” if police officers are to enforce the Government’s ‘homophobic hatred’ law with “good judgment and a [...]

MEP: EU seen as cold place for Christianity

Sam Wylie — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 14:43:33 +0000

An Irish MEP says the EU is seen as a “cold place for Christianity”. Gay Mitchell MEP, speaking in the European Parliament, said he had experienced a lack of respect from people about his religious belief. Mr Mitchell said there are “people here who see themselves as fair minded and liberal but who are anything [...]

Alcohol toll: rising deaths and hospital admissions

Matt Jess — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 14:13:51 +0000

Shocking new figures have revealed the scale of alcohol-related deaths and hospital admissions in England. Every year nearly 9,000 people die from diseases directly caused by alcohol, while admissions to hospital with alcohol-related conditions reached 860,000 last year. Senior health professionals have said the impact of alcohol is “becoming a public health emergency” and called for tough [...]

Peer’s 11th hour bid to legalise assisted suicide

Matt Jess — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 12:55:19 +0000

A Peer in the House of Lords has launched another bid to legalise assisted suicide, just weeks after the House rejected a different attempt to weaken the law. Lord Alderdice has tabled an amendment to the Coroners and Justice Bill, which is scheduled for a Report Stage debate in the House of Lords on Monday. During a [...]

Government home ed plans ‘deeply sinister’

Jane Leung — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:47:00 +0000

The Government is taking its powers “a step too far” if officials are allowed to question children without their parents present, warns a Daily Telegraph columnist. Philip Johnston, writing about new proposals for controlling home-schooling families, said parents should oppose the “pied pipers of Whitehall”. Under the new proposals, Government officials will have the power to [...]

Secular Thought for the Day decision expected

Jane Leung — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:40:08 +0000

The BBC Trust is expected to announce within weeks a decision on whether to allow secular and humanist views on its Radio 4 slot, Thought for the Day. Secularists argue that their views should feature during the three-minute religious slot but critics say that the Today Programme, which it features in, is already dominated by [...]

Barnardo’s calls for more gays to adopt

Jane Leung — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 11:53:46 +0000

The children’s charity Barnardo’s is looking for more same-sex couples and individuals to adopt, its head of adoption has told a gay news website. Carolyn Oliver, head of adoption at the charity, says she wants to ensure gays and lesbians are aware of their adoption rights. She told PinkNews.co.uk: “We’re looking for gay couples and individuals [...]

Tate set to lose thousands over nude Brooke Shields

Sam Wylie — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 10:24:37 +0000

The Tate Modern may lose thousands of pounds from exhibition catalogues which show a nude picture of Brooke Shields aged ten. The gallery displayed the nude image last month but removed it after police from the Obscene Publications Unit visited the gallery. However, the image is reproduced in a catalogue printed to accompany the exhibition. Tate [...]

Assisted suicide must stay illegal, say MLAs

Sam Wylie — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 10:16:28 +0000

Two Northern Ireland MLAs have spoken out against any weakening of the law on assisted suicide, saying it should be “strenuously opposed”. Jeffrey Donaldson and Simon Hamilton made clear their opposition to any attempt to weaken the law on assisted suicide, which is currently illegal. Last month the Director of Public Prosecutions for England and Wales, [...]

BBC slurs evangelicals in home school debate

Mike Judge — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 08:00:02 +0000

Some evangelical parents need monitoring by the state because they may ‘intimidate’ their children with ideas about God, sin and hell, a BBC radio host has said. Listen to the comments: The Government’s Schools Minister replied by saying this is part of the reason for conducting a review of the rules on home education. The comments were made [...]

Minister says Government is not sidelining believers

Sam Wylie — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 07:31:28 +0000

The Government’s Minister for Communities has denied Christians are being marginalised in Labour’s Britain. John Denham, who describes himself as a “secular humanist”, said to a group of church leaders that that neither faith nor believers were being sidelined by the Government. Earlier this month Baroness Warsi, the shadow minister for community cohesion, said there was [...]

Host civil partnerships in Parliament, says PM

Sam Wylie — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 14:19:30 +0000

Prime Minister Gordon Brown has today called for gay couples to be allowed to have civil partnership ceremonies inside Parliament. Watch the Prime Minister’s comments Currently MPs, Lords and their families can get married and hold christenings in the Chapel of St Mary Undercroft inside the Houses of Parliament. But Mr Brown believes Parliament could be used for [...]

Betting machines ripped my life apart, says mum

Sam Wylie — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 14:05:55 +0000

A mother has told the BBC how her life was destroyed by quick-fire betting machines that she calls the ‘heroin’ of gambling. Watch the BBC report Speaking anonymously, she said fixed odds betting machines, known as FOBs, were a real problem for her. They are like a casino and a fruit machine rolled into one. She was sent [...]

Row over schools shut for Muslim, Sikh, Hindu days

Sam Wylie — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 10:11:12 +0000

A London council which shuts its schools on Muslim, Sikh and Hindu holy days is rethinking its calendar. One head teacher told officials conducting a review into the closures she was “frustrated” by the enforced holidays. Waltham Forest Council in East London closes its state schools on Eid-Ul-Fitr, Diwali and Guru Nanak’s Birthday, which are celebrated [...]

British girls aged 12 sold into sex trade

Jane Leung — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 09:25:59 +0000

British girls as young as twelve are being sold to wealthy men for sex at up to £50,000 a time, it has been disclosed. Three women and a man have been arrested in Manchester after secretly being filmed offering to sell six girls aged between 14 and 23 at a five-star West London hotel. They were also [...]

Muslim group: March in UK cities for Sharia

Sam Wylie — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 08:57:42 +0000

A radical Muslim group wants to hold a series of marches in British cities calling for Sharia law to be implemented throughout the UK. The group, Islam4UK, is fronted by Anjem Choudary. While publicising the march he called on the Queen and other prominent British figures to become Muslims. Watch Mr Choudary’s speech Islam4UK is planning [...]

UK may tell overseas outposts to drop God

Mike Judge — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 14:33:54 +0000

The Foreign Office may tell two of Britain’s overseas territories to cut references to Christianity from their constitutions. The elimination of Christianity from the documents is being urged by a committee of MPs that looks at foreign affairs issues. The Foreign Office says the suggestion is being “carefully considered”. But the Bishop of Winchester says the idea [...]

Massive pro-life march in Madrid

Sam Wylie — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 12:44:00 +0000

Up to two million people took to the streets in Spain on Saturday to protest against Government plans to weaken the country’s abortion law. Watch a CNN report from the march Spanish citizens took to Madrid’s streets under a huge banner that read: “Every Life Matters”. Organisers said people travelled to the rally from various cities across [...]

Dutch anti-Islam MP enters Britain

Jane Leung — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 14:28:14 +0000

A controversial Dutch MP previously banned from Britain because of his outspoken views on Islam landed in London this morning and held a press conference in Parliament. Last week he successfully overturned the ban. Speaking inside Westminster today, he said being in Britain was “a victory for freedom of speech”. A Home Office spokesman said the [...]

Late term abortion stats to be public

Matt Jess — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 13:29:57 +0000

Pro-lifers have won a court battle with the Government meaning that officials cannot hide the number of babies aborted for treatable disabilities. The ruling by the Information Tribunal has been hailed as a victory for “transparency”. In its ruling the Tribunal said that it was satisfied that disclosure would not contravene Data Protection Principles and would not [...]

‘Abortion addict’ has 15 terminations in 17 years

Jane Leung — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 13:27:12 +0000

A self-confessed ‘abortion addict’ has written a book about how she had 15 abortions in 17 years because of a “controlling” husband who didn’t want children. One pro-lifer said this shows how “abortion is part of a very sad story for women”. Although the author remains pro-abortion, she admits: “My story is a perversion of both maternal [...]

Outrage at Bible defacing art exhibit sparks review

Jane Leung — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 11:56:33 +0000

A decision has been taken to review procedures which allowed a Bible to be defaced during a gay art exhibition in a taxpayer-funded gallery. The head of the Scottish arts body responsible has ordered a major review to prevent future exhibitions from sparking the same public outrage. Obscene and offensive messages were scrawled over the pages [...]

Dutch anti-Islam MP gets UK ban reversed

Jane Leung — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 11:09:05 +0000

A Dutch MP can now enter the UK after winning his appeal against a Home Office decision in February which barred him from entering the country because of his anti-Islam views. Geert Wilders, the maker of anti-Koran film Fitna, described the decision as a “victory for freedom of speech” and plans to visit “as soon [...]

Church faces closure after council bans ‘noisy’ hymns

Jane Leung — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 10:03:25 +0000

Another church could be forced to close after a local council said that the hymns were too loud. It is the second such case to hit the headlines in the last few days. The congregation will now struggle to hear the music and the sermon at All Nations Centre in Kennington, South London, after Lambeth [...]

Obama: Gay relationships just as ‘real and admirable’

Matt Jess — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 16:20:40 +0000

President Obama has committed himself to the goal that Americans will one day recognise same-sex relationships as “just as real and admirable as relationships between a man and a woman”. Mr Obama’s “unprecedented” remarks were hailed by his audience at a dinner for a high-profile ‘gay rights’ group in Washington DC on Saturday. Joe Salmonese, president of [...]

Sentamu slams TV shows glamorising prostitution

Jane Leung — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 12:37:20 +0000

The Archbishop of York has hit out at the glamorisation of prostitution as a “middle class trade” through its fictional portrayal on television. Dr John Sentamu blamed books and television dramas such as ITV’s Secret Diary of a Call Girl, which follows the life of its main character, Belle de Jour, a high-end prostitute. He criticised [...]

Children come before career for ‘real’ women, study finds

Matt Jess — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:42:59 +0000

A new report has criticised Government policies which push women into employment after finding that most find fulfilment in motherhood rather than in full time careers. The report was written by Cristina Odone, a former deputy editor of the New Statesman magazine, and published by the Centre for Policy Studies. Using figures from recent polls conducted [...]

Students offered booze bribes to take sex tests

Jane Leung — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 14:51:05 +0000

Students are being offered free alcohol in exchange for agreeing to be tested for sexually transmitted infections (STIs), under a new scheme being rolled out on campuses across the country. Willing participants are given tokens which can be exchanged for alcoholic drinks under the scheme devised by the National Union of Students (NUS). But press reports [...]

Church silenced over Muslim neighbour’s noise complaint

Matt Jess — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 08:42:45 +0000

A church in London says its ability to praise God has been taken away after the local council subjected it to noise restrictions following a complaint from a Muslim neighbour. Immanuel International Christian Centre has seen congregation numbers dwindle from 100 to 30 since the restrictions on amplified music and sermons were enforced. On Tuesday the church [...]

All-day drinking laws condemned as failure

Sam Wylie — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 15:31:11 +0000

The Government’s round-the-clock drinking laws have caused so much trouble they must be torn up and replaced with tough new regulations, says the Shadow Home Secretary. Chris Grayling set out the plans during his speech at the Conservative Party conference. He highlighted the violence and social problems associated with heavy drinking and said: “No one [...]

BBC plans to crack down on swearing

Sam Wylie — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 15:18:34 +0000

The BBC has revealed plans to clamp down on swearing even after the 9pm watershed. New BBC guidelines for regulating bad language on the corporation’s TV, radio and internet output have been released to the public for their comments. Swearing may be bleeped out after the watershed and viewers should be given more warning about [...]

1 in 4 of world population is Muslim, study concludes

Matt Jess — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 14:58:52 +0000

Muslims account for one in four of the world’s population – 1.57 billion people – a new study estimates. The figure is higher than researchers expected. After spending three years researching data from 232 countries and territories, the authors of Mapping the Global Muslim Population say it is the most comprehensive study of its kind. They [...]

Kids surf net without parents’ supervision

Jane Leung — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 09:59:16 +0000

A fifth of children aged five to seven are surfing the internet without an adult in the room, new research shows. The news will raise concerns about access to adult material and grooming by paedophiles. Despite parents’ fears, less than half of those whose children use the internet at home have controls in place to stop [...]

Scotland’s drug problem costs £400,000 an hour

Jane Leung — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 16:29:35 +0000

The drug problem in Scotland is totting up an annual bill of almost £3.5 billion in social costs and money flowing to the black market, according to new Scottish Government research. Drug costs relating to social factors such as NHS treatment, the criminal justice system and social care amounted to the equivalent of £400,000 an [...]

Tory Shadow Minister: We support ‘marriage’

Sam Wylie — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 16:19:00 +0000

Marriage is a solid framework for life and a Conservative government would back the institution, according to Shadow Minister for the Family, Maria Miller. However, her comments should be read in the light of David Cameron’s avowed belief that marriage can include same-sex couples. Mrs Miller laid out plans to support marriage in the tax system [...]

Tories host ‘pride’ party in gay village

Sam Wylie — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 16:06:55 +0000

The Conservative Party’s first official ‘gay pride’ party included “posters of semi-naked men and buckets of condoms on the tables” according to a Times journalist. The party was hosted inside Spirit bar in Manchester’s gay village and attracted hundreds of revellers including top Tory members. Party chairman Eric Pickles was at the event as well [...]

Suicide woman’s parents to sue doctors over death

Jane Leung — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 12:30:32 +0000

A family is set to sue a hospital after doctors left their suicidal daughter to die because she had signed a ‘living will’ asking them not to save her. An inquest ruled last week that it would have been “unlawful” for doctors to treat Kerrie Wooltorton because she arrived at hospital after poisoning herself carrying [...]

Living wills law may be reviewed after suicide

Jane Leung — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 09:03:20 +0000

The law behind ‘living wills’ may need to be changed, says a Government minister, after a depressed woman used one to order doctors not to save her life when she committed suicide. An inquest ruled that doctors had no choice but to allow Kerrie Wooltorton to die because she arrived at hospital after poisoning herself [...]

Novel cancelled after Muslim backlash fear

Sam Wylie — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 14:17:22 +0000

A novel about a Muslim ‘honour killing’ has been dropped by its publisher because of fears about violent retaliation by Muslims. German publisher Droste said it was worried about the repercussions of publishing the novel after Danish cartoons of Mohammed published in 2005 led to riots. The publishers had reportedly contacted an expert on Islamic [...]

Muslims reject removing extremists link to grants

Sam Wylie — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 08:54:26 +0000

Muslim groups say that they want money from the Government but don’t like the strings attached which ask them to help root out extremism. The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) says that the grants which require them to stand against violent hard-liners are ‘intrusive’. However, they say they do want the money which is designed to [...]

Labour intolerant against people of faith, say Tories

Mike Judge — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 15:37:46 +0000

The Government has allowed intolerance against Christians to grow, the Conservatives’ shadow minister for community cohesion says. A clip from Baroness Warsi’s speech to the Conservative Party conference Baroness Warsi, a Muslim, was speaking at the Conservative Party conference yesterday. She said forced secularism is “not the British way”. In her speech she said: “Under Labour, the state [...]

Sikh policeman wins £10k payout over turban row

Matt Jess — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 14:24:27 +0000

A Sikh policeman told to remove his turban so he could wear a helmet for riot training has won £10,000 compensation from Greater Manchester Police. An employment tribunal ruled that PC Gurmeal Singh had been subject to indirect racial and religious discrimination and harassment. A practising Sikh, it is against PC Singh’s religion to remove his turban [...]

“Chuffed” schoolboy becomes father at 13

Matt Jess — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 12:38:18 +0000

A schoolboy aged 13 has become one of Britain’s youngest fathers after his 16-year-old girlfriend gave birth this week. The boy’s father said his son was “chuffed to bits” and “taking his responsibilities very seriously”. The case is likely to reignite national debate surrounding Britain’s teenage pregnancy rate and the sexualisation of young teenagers. The young couple from [...]

All Scots schools to have sex clinic

Sam Wylie — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 11:16:52 +0000

Every Scottish secondary school should have a sex clinic, the Scottish Government has announced. The Roman Catholic Church has strongly criticised the move saying it is “arguably the most counterproductive development in public health ever seen”. The sex clinics will offer children free condoms and pregnancy tests. Parents will not be told about their children using [...]

Animal-human embryo research funding denied

Sam Wylie — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 16:06:55 +0000

All the British projects licensed to create animal-human embryos have been refused funding, it has now been revealed. In January two of the three projects that had been granted licences were denied funding and a national newspaper reports today that the third has also failed to obtain a grant for the work. The creation of animal-human [...]

Pro-life numbers increase against pro-choice Obama

Sam Wylie — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 15:30:22 +0000

Support for protecting the unborn is rising in America, with one factor being a reaction against President Obama’s pro-abortion stance, a new poll has shown. Researchers called the rise in opposition to abortion, up from 40 per cent to 44 per cent in one year, “unusual”. Support for abortion has fallen from 54 to 47 per cent. President [...]

Lib Dems send ‘Happy Eid’ greeting to Asian Christian

Jen Davis — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 12:25:16 +0000

The Liberal Democrats have mistakenly sent a card to a Christian in Watford wishing him a ‘Happy Eid’ because he has a ‘Muslim-sounding’ name. Javid Suleman received the card from Liberal Democrat prospective parliamentary candidate Sal Brinton. Mr Suleman said he thought he had been categorised as a Muslim on the party’s mailing list because of [...]

Gay penguin book gets most US ban requests

Sam Wylie — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 12:20:12 +0000

A controversial children’s story about gay penguins has come top in a list of books Americans have asked public libraries to withdraw. The American Library Association run an annual Banned Books Week which highlights books which library users have requested to be banned. The book at the top of the list, entitled And Tango Makes [...]

Father ‘ashamed’ that law allowed daughter’s suicide

Jen Davis — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 12:15:05 +0000

A father whose daughter died in a hospital after deliberately swallowing poison says the law which allowed it to happen makes him ashamed to be English. Kerrie Wooltorton arrived at hospital after taking poison to kill herself, but was carrying what she said was a ‘living will’ asking not to be treated. After consulting lawyers [...]

Harriet Harman tells Arnie to close prostitute website

Sam Wylie — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 15:56:34 +0000

Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Governor of California, has been told by Harriet Harman to shut down a prostitute website based in his state which reviews British prostitutes. Miss Harman, the Equalities Minister, called for “PunterNet” to be closed down. She was speaking at the Labour Party Conference and said the website was “truly degrading”. Miss Harman [...]

Hollywood: Polanski’s sex with 13-year-old ‘not rape’

Jen Davis — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 15:50:44 +0000

A group of Hollywood stars has called for director Roman Polanski to escape jail for drugging and having sex with a 13-year-old girl in 1978. Mr Polanski was arrested this week in Switzerland after spending more than 30 years in exile to avoid his original prison sentence. His victim, Samantha Gailey, told a jury that he [...]

Nude image of ten-year-old Brooke Shields taken down

Sam Wylie — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 13:48:22 +0000

A nude picture of Hollywood actress Brooke Shields aged ten has been removed by the Tate Modern after a visit from police officers. The image had been set to go on show as part of a new exhibition featuring pornography in the taxpayer-funded gallery. But after police officers from the Obscene Publications Unit visited the gallery on [...]

Atheists publish Christmas guide

Sam Wylie — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 16:22:00 +0000

A group of well-known atheists have collaborated to write a book about celebrating Christmas without believing in God. Ariane Sherine edited the book which includes contributions from over 40 atheists including Richard Dawkins, Derren Brown, and Charlie Brooker. The comedian was also behind the bus advertisements that said: “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and [...]

Tatchell is wrong on the age of consent: sex is for adults

Jen Davis — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 15:46:29 +0000

‘Gay rights’ activist Peter Tatchell’s call to lower the age of consent to 14 has been dismissed by critics who say the current law is a crucial child protection measure. Mr Tatchell’s latest calls for the law to be relaxed came in a Radio 4 programme last week and were repeated in an article for [...]

Brown: all-day booze laws ‘aren’t working’

Jen Davis — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 15:46:11 +0000

The Prime Minister admitted in his conference speech yesterday that the controversial 24-hour drinking law introduced by his party in 2005 is “not working”. Gordon Brown told his party that local authorities would be given “power to ban 24-hour drinking throughout a community in the interests of local people”. Currently local authorities cannot issue a [...]

Gallery shows nude ten- year-old Brooke Shields

Sam Wylie — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 15:45:23 +0000

A naked photo of Hollywood actress Brooke Shields – taken when she was aged just ten – is set to go on display at the Tate Modern gallery in London. The image is a photo of a photo taken in 1975 and features the actress nude from the knees upwards and wearing make up. The decision [...]

Tories plan to make pre-nuptials binding

Jen Davis — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 14:38:52 +0000

With more couples signing pre-nuptial agreements, the Conservative Party has pledged to make the documents binding. The agreements, which outline the terms on which the couple would divide their assets if they divorced, are currently not enforceable by the courts. Opponents warn that the practice undermines the idea of marriage as a lifelong commitment. Shadow justice minister [...]

Churches join up against gay ordination in Scotland

Sam Wylie — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 13:20:21 +0000

A growing number of churches are joining together against the ordination of a gay minister in Scotland. The Church of Scotland appointed Scott Rennie, a divorced father-of-one who lives with his homosexual partner, as minister of a church in Aberdeen in July. Now a group of like-minded congregations set up to oppose the move says [...]

Scots law chief won’t follow DPP line on assisted suicide

Matt Jess — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 10:29:20 +0000

Scotland’s top prosecutor is resisting calls for her to follow the example of her counterpart in England and issue guidance on assisting a suicide. Lord Advocate Elish Angiolini QC said she would examine the English guidelines but that they would not be adopted in Scotland because Scottish law works differently. Last week the Director of Public Prosecutions [...]

Children downloading mobile pornography

Sam Wylie — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 15:03:50 +0000

Children are easily able to access pornographic videos on their mobile phones with parents only finding out when the bill comes to them. The National Association of Head Teachers says mobile phone pornography in schools is now “widespread and very worrying”. One school is confiscating four mobile phones a day because of pornographic images on [...]

Harman dismisses financial fears on costly Equality Bill

Matt Jess — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 13:20:10 +0000

Harriet Harman has insisted that the Government should push on with its Equality Bill, despite fears about its impact on the economy. Speaking at a fringe event at the Labour Party conference in Brighton, Miss Harman said that equality is “not something that can be put on the back burner when economic times are difficult”. Critics of [...]

Mother’s suicide turns lens on skewed police priorities

Jen Davis — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 11:31:50 +0000

How can the police zealously pursue Christians for criticising Islam yet say the thugs who drove a mother to kill herself and her daughter were a ‘low priority’? That is the question asked by Daily Mail columnist Melanie Phillips today as it emerged that Fiona Pilkington set fire to herself and her disabled daughter in [...]

‘Age of consent protects kids against heartbreak’

Jen Davis — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 11:14:45 +0000

The age of consent law is a safeguard against the physical risks and emotional damage caused by underage sex, says Shadow Children’s Secretary Michael Gove. Last week an academic called for the age of consent to be reduced from 16 to 13. Mr Gove says the “troubling consequences of the sexual revolution” have left society eager [...]

Former GP arrested for assisting suicide

Sam Wylie — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 10:09:01 +0000

A doctor who has been a ‘right to die’ campaigner for 30 years has been arrested for her part in a woman’s suicide in June. Pro-euthanasia campaigners are using the arrest to call for a change in the law. Dr Libby Wilson has been questioned by Surrey Police under suspicion of “aiding, abetting, counselling [...]

Dr advised me to abort my baby, but I refused

Jen Davis — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 15:39:35 +0000

A baby boy whose seriously ill mother was told she should abort him is safe and healthy at three-and-a-half months. While she was pregnant with Shaun, Hollie Quinn was diagnosed with a life-threatening condition and advised to have a termination. “I was at death’s door – so ill that they had no idea how I [...]