NI supreme court examines abortion law appeal
Northern Ireland's’ supreme court judges are considering whether abortion laws breach human rights. Currently abortion is illegal unless a woman's life is in danger or if continuing the pregnancy would cause mental or physical harm. On 25 and 26 October a number of contributors explained why they believe the law is incompatible with human rights, while others explained their opposition to any law changes. Ireland's attorney general and lawyers for the department of justice argued for the status quo. Christian politician Jim Shannon said democratic values must be upheld, amid supreme court scrutiny of the abortion laws; and the majority of people in Northern Ireland support current laws. See also the next article.
Archbishops speak out on abortion
In a statement to healthcare professionals and others involved in terminations, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, and his Scottish counterpart Archbishop Philip Tartaglia called for a change of attitudes, in favour of greater protection for human life. Over eight million pregnancies have been aborted since David Steel's private member's bill became law fifty years ago. Urging a period of prayer and fasting, the 2,000-word document signed by the Catholic leaders also expressed concern that there are not enough safeguards protecting unborn children with disabilities. They said there was an urgent need for parents and teachers to promote the sanctity of human life. See the previous article.
Islamic finance in the UK
Islamic finance has been welcomed uncritically into the UK. Today there are over twenty lenders in the UK offering Islamic financial services. The British government has been promoting Islamic finance for some years, and in 2014 the UK made history by becoming the first non-Muslim country to issue a sovereign Islamic bond. However, there are serious problems and concerns about Islamic finance, which is why Christian Concern have produced a booklet on the subject. Islamic finance is based on the idea that the Qur'an prohibits all forms of interest; it also aims at increasing the influence of sharia law.
Recovering patients to be put in people's spare rooms?
A pilot scheme in Essex, called CareRooms, would have patients waiting for discharge from hospital staying with local residents who have a spare room. Increasingly, hospitals are full of patients who have nowhere to go. NHS figures show that last year 2.2 million hospital ‘bed days’ in England were lost due to delayed transfers of care. NHS bodies and local authorities are in preliminary discussions on the project. Chief Medical Officer Dr Harry Thirkettle said that such patients would be transferred to residential homes because they either live alone, don’t have support, or have mobility issues. So someone with a leg fracture and unable to go up and down their stairs until that fracture is healed, could come and stay in ground-floor accommodation. Hosts would be paid for this service; they could earn up to £1,000 a month.
