Displaying items by tag: Scotland

CARE for Scotland has urged Nicola Sturgeon to oppose assisted suicide to protect people with disabilities, after she signalled she might support plans to legalise the practice. In a recent interview Ms Sturgeon said she is ‘more open’ to a law change and has no ‘concluded view’ on a member's bill from Scottish Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur. Ms Sturgeon expressed opposition to assisted suicide in 2015 when it was last considered in Scotland. CARE said, ‘The First Minister's assessment of assisted suicide's dangers was correct in 2015 and ‘remains so today. It is confirmed by Canada’s tragic experience, where vulnerable citizens are coerced into opting for assisted death after being unable to access care and support. Canada experiences the ‘slippery slope’ of such laws. If Scotland agrees to assisted suicide for terminally ill, a campaign will begin in earnest to widen eligibility for the physically and mentally disabled.’ For more on Canada’s experience, see

Scotland’s school curriculum should be scrapped and replaced with a ‘traditional’ system, the Scottish Tories have said, amid warnings that classroom discipline has almost completely broken down. Teachers are now routinely being attacked, spat on, and sworn at by children as young as four. Mike Corbett, of the NASUWT teaching union, said serious issues had been reported even at the best state schools. He accused the Government of turning a blind eye to the problem by refusing to commission research into poor behaviour; it was as if it didn't really want to know the scale of the problem. Scottish Tories have now called for a ‘national conversation’ about replacing the country’s Curriculum for Excellence, which was supposed to help develop ‘well-rounded’ and confident children. This ‘un-Scottish’ approach has failed and its introduction over a decade ago has coincided with the country plummeting down international education league tables.

A detailed analysis of where almost £5bn of Covid business funding went is not possible due to gaps in data, a spending watchdog has found. The Scottish government provided £4.4bn in grants and business rates relief between the start of the pandemic and October 2021. A further £375m was announced following the emergence of Omicron last winter. Although the speed and scale of the rollout helped to safeguard thousands of jobs and businesses, Audit Scotland was unable to determine where all the money ended up. It also identified gaps in information about how quickly applicants received funding. Auditor general Stephen Boyle said, ‘Knowing where the money went matters’. Information to enable wider analysis of how funding supported groups, such as female-owned businesses, is not available from centrally held data. The Accounts Commission said that councils' fraud arrangements are generally robust, but during the pandemic they were severely relied upon.

Hundreds of ‘climate pilgrims’ have trekked miles from across the UK and Europe to Glasgow’s COP26. Some waved flags, others played musical instruments; many carried religious banners. Numerous intercessors prayed as they journeyed and will continue praying in Glasgow streets throughout the two weeks of COP26. We can pray along with them. Pray for world leaders to agree to act swiftly and justly transitioning the global economy from fossil fuels toward renewables. Pray for communities already affected by climate change to be fairly compensated. Pray for delegates to have the wisdom, compassion, humility and courage necessary to work in unity to safeguard the future of all life on this fragile planet. Pray for the Holy Spirit to inspire political leaders to embrace every single change needed to cultivate a more sustainable society, and may we all acknowledge the responsibilities God has placed upon us as stewards of His creation.

The Earth is sending a message to COP26. Delegates must commit to zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. China, the world's largest emitter, committed to achieve this by 2060 and India, the third largest emitter, by 2070. Ask God to convict delegates of greed and pride. May they re-assess all commitments and actions according to Micah 6:8 and act justly, love mercy and walk humbly under God’s authority. The Least Developed Countries group said, ‘Raising global ambition and increasing climate finance is paramount to our survival’. Pray that after COP26 the actions of powerful nations will reaffirm their positive pledges. In recent years more than two out of three deaths in the least developed countries were caused by droughts, wildfires, and floods. Pray that this crisis is treated like a crisis, and in the midst of the many voices clamouring to be heard important issues will be understood and positively acted on by decision-makers.

The COP26 climate conference (31 October - 12 November) is expected to draw 25,000 delegates plus 100,000 protesters to Glasgow. Major road closures will last until 15 November, causing disruption. The biggest disturbance will be on 6 November - the Global Day For Climate Justice. A breakdown in union talks means workers will strike from 1-12 November. Pray for pedestrians, cyclists, drivers, and passengers to have composure and patience as they face difficulties when commuting to work. Also 1,500 refuse collection and cleansing staff are striking over a pay dispute. Concerns are also raised regarding COP26’s impact on Covid cases. Many of those attending will not be fully vaccinated, and the magnitude of the event will cause increased cases in an already fragile situation. It could trigger the need for further pandemic restrictions.

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.

During COP26 Glasgow streets will see hundreds of people gather there to make their concerns known to world leaders through protests and petitions. God knows each and every one of them as immensely valuable, and He wants them to know that. During the conference YWAM volunteers will be based in one of the churches close to the main conference venue. Each day teams will be on Glasgow streets bringing the Good News of Jesus to those they meet. Pray for God’s anointing on each person as they engage with those to whom God leads them. Each of them also has a deep concern for the direction the world is going, and knows that God wants to see His creation flourish. Pray for God to build many bridges between His youth with a mission and those who have come for COP26. Pray also for peace on the streets if emotions run high.

At the time of writing there are 16 days to the start of COP26 in Glasgow when leaders from 197 nations will assemble and decide what to do about climate change. This will be the largest gathering of world leaders ever to take place in the UK. We can pray according to 1 Timothy 2:1-2 that God will inspire all in authority with understanding, wisdom and discernment. May they be as the men of Issachar and understand the times and know what to do. Pray for God to give His church clear directions for prayer in accordance with His will in the days leading up to the conference and during the event, and for His Kingdom before and during the conference so that ‘as the ‘kings of the earth take counsel together’ they will know that ‘they are but men’ (Psalm 9:19-20) and that God’s sovereign purposes will prevail (Proverbs 19:21; Isaiah 66:18).

In 2018 a group of senior clinicians at NHS Highland reported that a culture of bullying had existed for at least a decade. They described a ‘practice of suppressing criticism, which emanated from the very top of the organisation’ and led to a culture of ‘fear and intimidation’ which has had a detrimental effect on staff. John Sturrock QC found there were hundreds of people who had experienced bullying. A review was contacted by 340 people from most departments, services, and occupations. Over 280 had face-to-face meetings or made written submissions of bullying experiences. Staff said they had not felt valued, respected or supported in carrying out ‘very stressful work’. In 2021 NHS Highland expects to pay £3.4m in settlements to current and former staff who experienced bullying. Whistleblower Brian Devlin said the scale of settlements so far was ‘heartening’, but he had heard that some bullying still continues.