Displaying items by tag: United Kingdom

The Parliamentary Group Against Antisemitism said it was ‘devastated to learn of the death of their friend and colleague Sir David Amess MP. A long-standing and active member of the group and an excellent public servant, he will be sorely missed. Our thoughts are with his friends and family.’ Sir David recently spoke in Parliament on Holocaust Memorial Day saying, ‘Although I am not a Jew but a Catholic, there is Jewish blood in each and every one of us. I would certainly have been proud to be born a Jew, and I stand shoulder to shoulder with our local Jewish congregations. Over recent years, these people, my friends, have felt very vulnerable. I would like the Government to continue supporting the Community Security Trust, in its vital work to keep Jewish communities safe through the protective security grant.’ David also supported the genocide amendment to the Trade Bill.

After Father Jeffrey Woolnough was not allowed to reach Catholic MP Sir David Amess when he had been stabbed last Friday, an amendment was proposed in Parliament. In the Catholic tradition, the last rites are the final prayers said to commend a person to God's mercy. A Catholic Labour MP suggested adding the ‘Amess amendment’ to legislation to allow priests to reach and pray with terminally ill Catholics in the final moments of life or just after they have died. However, some professionals have argued that the proposed change could lead to the potential contamination of a crime scene.

Health leaders have called for some Covid restrictions to be reintroduced immediately to avoid England stumbling into a winter crisis. They said a back-up strategy, a Plan B which includes mandatory face coverings in crowded and enclosed spaces, should be implemented. UK cases have been rising sharply. Business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said it was not yet time for a Plan B and urged a greater uptake of booster jabs. He did not want to jeopardise the ‘hard-won gains’ of reopening the economy even though for a week daily Covid cases have averaged above 40,000, the worst figures since March. Overall, he said, ‘the health service is right at the edge’. Meanwhile, the health secretary is telling the public to ‘play their part and get a booster jab’ in order to enjoy Christmas with loved ones. Cabinet Office officials are already discussing ‘Plan C’ proposals which would ban mixing between households. See

The Evangelical Alliance are asking the Scottish government to open a grant for converting church buildings to become net zero in energy efficiency, ventilation and in their heat networks so that every church in Scotland is carbon-neutral by 2045. They said, ‘We believe it is part of our commission as Christians to be good stewards of God’s creation. After God created the earth and everything in it, He declared it very good. He invited the people to have “dominion” over it; they were to take responsibility for its care. As followers of Jesus, we should treat the earth with respect because God has entrusted us to take care of it.' Meanwhile seventy respected climate scientists want Boris Johnson to end new oil and gas developments off Shetland and urgently set out a concrete plan for moving from fossil fuels to low-carbon electricity sources.

Cornerstone, a Christian adoption and fostering charity, tried to overturn earlier judgments finding it had discriminated by only accepting heterosexual evangelical Christians as potential carers. The Court of Appeal agreed that the judge had been unduly dismissive of the importance of Cornerstone’s evangelical faith to its work and mission, but ruled that this did not justify sexual orientation discrimination in the furtherance of that mission. Cornerstone sought to argue it did not discriminate on the ground of sexual orientation but rather on behaviour, a distinction which was rejected by the court. However, this distinction is central to how many evangelical churches and organisations engage with issues of sexual orientation and identity within a biblical frame. As such, this highlights a growing chasm in societal and traditional evangelical approaches to human sexuality, making future challenges in this area highly likely. Cornerstone intends to appeal this latest decision.

Former Arsenal captain Tony Adams has said gambling is a far more common vice among football players than alcohol or drugs. The charity Sporting Chance, which helps current and retired athletes with a wide range of addictions, warned that professional football is facing a gambling ‘epidemic’ and predicted that gaming addiction will be one of the sport’s next major issues. Alcohol and drug addictions have been eclipsed by gambling as the most prevalent addiction for footballers. In rugby league prescription drugs are quite prevalent; in other sports, cocaine. Bolton Wanderers cut all ties with betting firms after issuing a statement acknowledging that lives are being ruined by problem gambling. There is also growing concern about the increase in professional footballers having gaming addictions. There may now need to be a gaming clinic. Both Sporting Chance and the Professional Footballers’ Association have said that clubs are now asking for help with controlling players’ gambling problems.

People-smuggling networks in migrant camps are slick and organised. It took little more than a week for Hamid to find a people-smuggler in Calais. Within a couple of days, he was hiding near the beach with 75 others, waiting to cross the Channel in a small inflatable boat. Over 18,000 people so far this year have crossed the twenty miles of sea between Britain and France in small boats. Despite significant investment on both sides of the Channel, that's more than double the number last year. France's northern coastline is covered with dunes, foliage and hundreds of old WW2 bunkers where migrants can hide. High-security fencing and surveillance cameras now successfully protect the ports and Eurotunnel terminal, but surveillance is difficult among forested dunes. Hamid’s crossing cost £2,500, on top of the £7,275 he had paid to leave Afghanistan and cross Europe to France.

Joe Biden’s Build Back Better plan has a $3.5tn price tag that could transform millions of Americans’ lives. The bipartisan senate infrastructure bill proposes $66bn of new spending on passenger and freight rail projects over the next decade as the Democrats undertake the most ambitious and transformative domestic policy agendas since the New Deal of the 1930s. It also focuses on a long list of social policies and programmes ranging from education to healthcare to housing to climate. With Republicans unified in opposition, Democrats are using a special budgetary process known as ‘reconciliation’ to avoid the 60-vote filibuster threshold and pass the bill on a party-line vote. Boris Johnson’s Build Back Better plans to support economic growth through significant investment in infrastructure, skills and innovation, and will tackle the NHS backlog while capping social care costs for adults. Another aspect was for a Build Back Coronavirus recovery plan: see

Daniel had successes in Gangsta Rap and sold crack and heroin to gangs until 2014. Now he is a missionary pouring out teas and coffees to the marginalised in London. An excited, joyful guest shows Daniel pictures of his new flat. There’s no mistaking his relief at getting a safe stable place to stay after sleeping in tunnels. ‘That’s beautiful bro!’ bursts, Daniel. ‘I’m so happy for you! Bless you!’ Then Daniel points upwards with both hands. ‘And you know what? We give thanks to Jesus!’ This life-changing turnaround for the guest is an insight into how Daniel’s life has changed. Many of those Daniel now ministers to used to be his customers for crack and heroin. To read his story, click the ‘More’ button.

After both Manny Pacquiao and Oleksander Usyk declared their faith to the media, Britain's Tyson Fury praised God after retaining his heavyweight boxing world title in a classic fight with Deontay Wilder. ‘First of all, I would like to say thank you to my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.’ Fury said.