UK & Ireland in Brief

The Shadow Equalities Minister Claire Coutinho has called for suspended nurse Jennifer Melle to be reinstated.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council had called Christian nurse Jennifer Melle a “risk” to the public for refusing to use a convicted paedophile’s preferred gender identity.

Coutinho is to present the case to Health Secretary Wes Streeting. Nurse Melle, 40, has over 12 years of service in the NHS. She has since launched legal proceedings against the NHS for harassment and human rights breaches, due to be heard in 2026.

James Patterson

Hospitals in Ireland are reportedly not providing sufficient care for babies after failed late-term abortions.

Some of these babies have died after birth following an attempted abortion. The scarce data available shows that in 2022, 12 babies died shortly after failed abortions, while ten died in 2020.

The Pro Life Campaign posted on social media that there must be accountability for the apparent lack of medical care given to these babies. A spokesperson for the campaign, Eilís Mulroy, described the statistics as “truly shocking”.

James Patterson

Around 1.4 million people in Britain are suffering from gambling-related harm, according to a new study by the Gambling Commission.

In a survey of 19,000 adults, 2.7% had a score of eight or more on the Problem Gambling Severity Index, a significant rise over the previous estimate of 0.4%.

James Patterson

The Church in Wales has been urged to rethink its blessings of same-sex couples.

During a meeting of the church’s Governing Body, 27 of the 143 members voiced their opinion without debating each other. Members anonymously recorded their views to contribute to the Bench of Bishops. In 2021, the denomination introduced a five-year trial of blessing couples in a same-sex marriage or civil partnership. When the liturgy expires next September, the Church in Wales can choose to abolish the current practice, make it permanent, or expand it to introduce same-sex weddings.

Christian Institute

The Christian Institute says Northern Ireland is not doing enough to foster a culture of marriage and discourage divorce.

The Institute argues that removing fault-based grounds and reducing separation periods in divorce law would cause marriage to be considered disposable.

The Department of Finance has argued the new divorce process would be less “stressful” and “challenging”, but the Christian Institute argues that “fault grounds” are important for cases involving domestic abuse and adultery.

James Patterson

A new poll has shown that more Scots oppose assisted suicide for people with incurable illnesses than support it.

A total of 156 people from Scotland were surveyed by YouGov, with 38% saying that the “law should not be changed” and 33% saying it should be changed. The concern with the bill is that “terminally ill” is defined as a disease which someone is unable to recover from and would be expected to die prematurely from.

James Patterson

The Church of Scotland has said that allowing children to go against their parents’ decision to withdraw them from RE could cause family tensions.

Under the Children (Withdrawal from Religious Education and Amendment of UNCRC Compatibility Duty) (Scotland) Bill, parents can withdraw their child from RE but the child can choose to overrule this decision.

The Christian Institute’s Head of Education John Denning emphasised that “parents are recognised in international law as the primary advocates for and guardians of children. To disempower parents … is to weaken the most important safeguard a child has.”

James Patterson

The UK Government has confirmed it has no plans to increase Sunday Trading hours.

Currently, the Sunday Trading Act restricts large stores to opening for a maximum of six consecutive hours on a Sunday, with these hours needing to fall between 10am and 6pm.

Sources in the Treasury apparently suggested scrapping the Act, introduced in 1994, to mitigate the backlash from increasing the business rates multiplier up to 10p for properties over £500,000. Since then, a spokesperson for the Treasury has denied there were any planned changes.

James Patterson

The government has changed marriage laws in the UK to allow for more choice over where a wedding can be held.

Under the plans, couples will be able to get married in any “appropriate and dignified” location, such as beaches, gardens and private estates.

James Patterson

Four Darlington nurses, already at the centre of a high-profile employment tribunal which begins this month, are also facing professional misconduct investigations, after complaints made by members of the public to the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).

Claire Coutinho, Shadow Secretary of State for Women and Equalities, said: “It is beyond belief that these four remarkable nurses may now be dragged through another vexatious disciplinary process.”

Christian Concern