Freedom to express beliefs not unlimited – court

A lay magistrate with 15 years’ experience has lost his appeal after being removed from the bench for speaking to the media about his Christian views on parenting. He did so despite explicit guidance that the judiciary should not communicate with the media.

Richard Page publicly made known his view that it was not in a child’s best interests to be adopted by anyone other than a mother and father, nor was it normal to be adopted by a single parent or same-sex couple.

He had already been reprimanded for speaking to the media but, despite a warning from the Lord Chief Justice, Page continued commenting and was eventually removed for judicial misconduct. The court took the view that he would approach cases involving adoption by same-sex couples on the basis of his own preconceived beliefs – not on the basis of law or evidence.

Page also lost his appeal against an employment tribunal ruling after losing his position with the local NHS trust. The court ruled that what he had said went beyond ‘a sceptical opinion on same-sex adoptions’. The risk was that mentally-ill gay people could be deterred from engaging with the Trust’s services, impacting its ability to engage with gay service-users.

The appeal judges made clear the freedom to express religious or any other beliefs cannot be unlimited. There are situations in which it is right that Christians working for an institution, particularly if they hold a high-profile position, to accept limitations on how they publicly express their beliefs on matters of particular sensitivity.

It is understood Page is to appeal to the Supreme Court.

Separately, actor Seyi Omooba has lost her case after being dropped from a production when historical Facebook posts expressing her Biblical views on homosexuality caught the theatre’s attention.

She claimed unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation on the basis of her religious beliefs. The court found that she had not ‘done her homework’ before accepting the part. She had failed to read the script for The Colour Purple – which would have shown it required her to portray a lesbian relationship.