UK & Ireland in Brief

An anti-abortion group was banned from becoming an official club at Aberdeen University, it was reported in November.

The student society prevented a pro-life society from affiliating – which means the group cannot access funding to help run events. The Students’ Association has a pro-choice policy which backs ‘free, safe and legal access to abortion’. Under the policy, the association has agreed not to offer any ‘funding, facilitation or platform’ to groups that offer different advice on the issue.

League tables published in November show faith schools account for almost half of the top 500 state primary schools in the UK.

Out of the top 100 state primaries, 48 are faith schools – 19 of them Church of England. The good performance comes in the face of pressure from humanists to end the government funding of faith schools. Faith schools account for just 37% of all primary schools in the UK. 

The Supreme Court refused to hear the case of a man who wants to be allowed help to kill himself, it was reported on 27 November.

Noel Conway, who suffers from motor neurone disease and has limited movement, wanted the courts to allow him to die with medical assistance. The judges explained their decision not to hear the case by saying only Parliament had authority to change the law.

In a hearing on 27 November, ex-magistrate Mr Richard Page was granted permission to take his case against the Lord Chancellor and Lord Chief Justice to the Employment Appeal Tribunal.

Mr Page, 72, was removed as a magistrate in 2016 for expressing his view that it was in a child’s best interests to be raised by a mother and a father. Mr Page is accusing the most senior judges in England and Wales of victimising him for his deeply-held Christian beliefs.

A schoolteacher voiced serious concerns over the sharp rise in children changing their gender identity and about how many are autistic or struggling with mental health problems, it was reported in November.

She also raised concerns that older trans pupils at her school, where 17 children are changing gender, were ‘grooming’ younger children to follow suit. A report revealed that more than one third of patients referred to the NHS service for gender-confused young people have autistic traits.

At an event commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Armistice, Blackburn Cathedral hosted a performance where a local imam gave the Muslim call to prayer, declaring ‘there is no other God but Allah’.

Having found out about the performance minutes beforehand, the Dean of Blackburn promised this would not happen again.

In November, Christian Medical Fellowship announced its new President to be Mark Pickering, as Peter Saunders steps down to take up a new role as CEO of international Christian Medical and Dental Association.

Mark has been deeply committed to CMF for over 20 years since he was a London medical student. He has been involved in CMF’s ministry at many levels, and has been active within the BMA.

The number of children classed as having a gambling problem has quadrupled to more than 50,000 in two years.

The Gambling Commission study, released in November, suggests that 450,000 children aged 11 to 16 bet regularly, more than those who have taken drugs, smoked or drunk alcohol. Bets with friends, slot machines and scratchcards were most popular.