Displaying items by tag: United Kingdom

After his asylum application was rejected 21 years ago, Sunny began sleeping on London buses. His travel card holder quotes Jesus, ‘Peace I bequeath to you, my own peace I give you.’ He talks about his younger self, years ago, kneeling in prayer in a Nigerian prison, waiting to be executed. His offence - struggling for democracy. A guard lifts him to his feet and rushes him down corridors, out into blinding sunlight, where a car is waiting. Family and friends had bought his freedom and his flight to London. He took a course in documentary-making years ago, reporting on the lives of London's homeless, never imagining he would soon be in their shoes. Now a church minister buys him a monthly pass for bus fares and he volunteers at churches. He reads in the reference library, and is fed by generous restaurant managers at the end of the day.

Bovine tuberculosis continues to devastate many herds of cattle, prompting deep divisions between different stakeholders as to the role of wildlife in spreading the disease. In the UK, in the 12 months up to September 2019, nearly 5.5% of registered herds were affected and 45,831 cattle were slaughtered, a 4.5% increase on the previous year. Pray for all affected, for government to be given wisdom in implementing effective control strategies and providing fair compensation, for reconciliation of different interest groups, and for ‘healing of the land’ (2 Chronicles 7:13-14). Also, in several issues last year we drew attention to the way the relative tranquility of Britain’s green and pleasant land, which is so appreciated by many townspeople, is being darkened by increasing crime, including domestic abuse, farm thefts and drug-dealing. Continue to pray for believers to shine as lights in the darkness. (Philippians 2:15)

Lord, we thank You for the life of Queen Elizabeth II, and celebrate her heart for You and her people, the wisdom, righteousness and integrity reflected in her life, and the respect she carries within this land. We decree that every change taking place at present will strengthen and support the monarchy, promoting and releasing a shift and moving forward in keeping with Your times and purposes. In this season of transition, we speak divine order into every aspect of the royal family. We release Your light into every place of confusion and misunderstanding, that wounds will be healed, relationships restored and solutions released. We speak life into every God-given purpose and call upon Prince Harry and the Duchess of Sussex, that every gift and skill will be used in alignment with God-given destiny. We agree that the power of Kingdom purpose will overwhelm any plans of the enemy.

(Suzanne Ferrett)

A ban on children heading the football in Scotland could be implemented due to fears over links between football and dementia. The Scottish FA wants to lead the way on the issue after a report found former players are more at risk of dying from the disease. An announcement on banning under-12s heading footballs in training is expected this month. A similar ban is in place in the USA. Scotland would become the first European country to impose such a restriction. Discussions have been ongoing since an October study found the first links between former players and degenerative brain disease. Although former players are three-and-a-half times more likely to die of dementia, there is no firm evidence linking heading the ball to the disease. A neurosurgeon said that England striker Jeff Astle died from a brain condition normally linked to boxers rather than Alzheimer's disease.

‘The moment of crisis has come in efforts to tackle climate change.’ ‘We have been putting things off for year after year.’ ‘Southeast Australia is on fire because the temperatures of the Earth are increasing,’ warned Sir David Attenborough. The crisis has come because, although scientists are urging rapid responses. international decisions made on key issues at climate conferences are put off and several countries are trying to dodge their commitments. Sir David said, ‘This is not just having a nice little debate and then coming away with a compromise. This is an urgent problem that has to be solved and we know how to do it - that is the paradoxical thing. We are refusing to take steps that we know must be taken. The release of greenhouse gases is increasing, not falling. The level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is now higher than anything experienced in history.’

Warnings from the Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW) about long-term funding of police services have received widespread media coverage. An estimated half a million applications are needed to fill 53,000 police officer posts, to fulfil the Government’s pledge to boost the service by 20,000. The federation calls on ministers to deliver on recent promises and rewrite funding rules by introducing at least a ten-year strategy for budgets, to allow forces to plan properly for the future instead of sticking to the current annual review. Speaking on Sky News a representative said, ‘Many promises have been made; we now need them to be turned into action.’ An estimated one in every 170 people in England and Wales will be needed if those 53,000 vacancies are to be filled. See also

Boris Johnson has said that the Iran nuclear deal should be replaced with a ‘Trump’ deal. He recognised US concerns that the 2015 deal was ‘flawed’, but there had to be a way of stopping Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons. His comments come amid reports that the UK, France and Germany intend to try to rescue the situation by triggering a dispute mechanism in the 2015 deal - which was abandoned by the US in 2018. Boris said, ‘Somehow, we have to stop Iran acquiring nuclear weapons. If we're going to remove we need a replacement. From the American perspective, it is a flawed deal negotiated by President Obama. Let's work together to replace it with the Trump deal. That's what we need to see. President Trump is a great dealmaker by his own account, and by many others.’

Islamic scholar and Christian Dr Antony McRoy said that there is something wrong in the basic philosophy of de-radicalisation programmes for terrorists; the London Bridge killings by Usman Khan are evidence of that. McRoy says that we are treating them as criminal offenders like serial car thieves or bank robbers, but we need to think a bit more like serial murderers or serial sex offenders who obviously have got something psychologically wrong with them. ‘But it's even more complex than that. These people are motivated by an ideology which says that the infidel, anti-Islamic West, is basically an agent of Satan, oppressing the Muslim world.’ He argues that the governments putting these programmes together represent a regime that its participants cannot get behind. ‘The people it is supposed to address are not going to take it seriously. These schemes cannot be effective without the supernatural intervention of God’ - like the transformation of the apostle Paul.

Boris Johnson said that the UK is in close contact with all sides to encourage de-escalation after Iran launched ballistic missiles at two US bases in Iraq in retaliation for their assassination of Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani. This is a pivotal moment. Iran was bound to respond to the strike on Soleimani, and has done so in a fluid situation. Admiral Lord West said that the violent instability plaguing the region has just worsened; the world's best hope of averting conflict escalations with Iran lies with Britain. He said, ‘Our diplomacy and wise counsel could haul the world back towards safety.’ The Archbishop of Wales urged the Government to ‘make the strongest representations for calm and wisdom to prevail in the cause of peace which the world, in so many places, so desperately needs.’ See also the world articles on Iran.

Hospitals are putting vulnerable female patients with men on NHS mental health wards. 1,019 sexual assaults were reported by male and female patients between April 2017 and October 2019. 491 attacks were so serious that they required safeguarding action, with 104 incidents reported to police. Over the same period, just 286 cases reported on single- sex wards. The figures sparked calls for the Government to invest in mental health infrastructure where wards are out of date, forcing men and women to mix together. In 2018, the Care Quality Commission investigated concerns around sexual safety in mental health wards and identified 1,120 sexual incidents involving patients, staff and visitors between April and June 2017. Although ministers pledged to eliminate mixed NHS wards, a loophole in the rules means male and female patients can still mix without breaching the guidelines.