Displaying items by tag: changes needed

Last week we prayed for better laws and legislation to safeguard children from online sexual exploitation. This week the Christian charity CARE said that the legislation - as it stands - falls short of safeguarding children. They said many amendments must be made to the bill, such as the issue of age verification measures. Tim Cairns said, ‘Last year, they drafted a bill that didn't cover all pornography websites. They amended the bill and the second reading was on 19 April.’ CARE said that there are still issues to be ironed out. For example, websites with self-selecting tick boxes do not meet the requirements for age assurance, or age verification. CARE said, ‘There is a moral duty to do this, given its broken promise to usher in age checks in 2017. Ministers can’t afford to let children down a second time.’

Homelessness is not a crime. The 1824 Vagrancy Act, which makes rough sleeping and begging illegal in England, is needlessly pushing vulnerable people further from help, according to a report from Crisis. The Government is reviewing the act as part of its rough sleeping strategy. Leading figures from across the political spectrum and the police, including former Met Commissioner Lord Hogan-Howe, have called for the repeal of the act, branding it out of date, inhumane and unfit to deal with the modern challenges of addressing rough sleeping and begging. Although some changes came into force on 7 November and further changes are being considered, this outdated and damaging act has not been repealed. Please pray for it to be completely abolished, and soon. See