Doctors will stop providing non-urgent care on the 21st June in the first industrial action by the profession for nearly 40 years. The move comes after a majority of doctors voted in favour of action in a British Medical Association ballot of 104,000 members over pension changes. Emergency care would still take place as doctors did not want to put patients at risk. By targeting non-urgent care, elective operations such as knee and hip replacements will be cancelled. Doctors are among the best paid public sector employees - and as such they also have the most lucrative pensions. The average hospital consultant retiring today will enjoy a pension of £48,000 a year and a lump sum of over £140,000. Among public sector pensions being paid out, doctors account for two thirds of the top 1% of pay outs.
Pray: for no patient safety to be compromised on the 21st June.(Ps.41:1)
More: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-18254499
DIY abortions at home?
01 Feb 2011Britain’s largest abortion provider is set to go to the High Court in a bid to allow women to abort their pregnancies whilst at home. BPAS, formerly the British Pregnancy Advisory Service, is seeking to change the interpretation of the law so that women in the first nine weeks of their pregnancy can take the second set of drugs necessary to induce an early medical abortion whilst at home, rather than under clinical supervision. The proposal has alarmed critics who believe that this would trivialise the procedure and ignore the dangers. A spokesman for the pro-life charity Life said: ‘Clearly BPAS’ intention is to increase access to abortion yet further, by making it little more than a pill-popping exercise'. Paul Tully, general secretary of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, said: ‘Abortion is an appalling ordeal for women, as well as the killing of an unborn child. BPAS is trivialising abortion and jeopardising women’s welfare.’
Pray: that the High Court will recognise the importance of counselling at each stage in the path towards an abortion. (Ps.32:8)
More: http://www.christian.org.uk/news/abortion-provider-wants-to-allow-diy-abortions-at-home/
Divorce easier than getting driving licence
05 Jan 2012Obtaining a divorce is now easier than getting a driving licence, a senior judge said yesterday. Sir Paul Coleridge said a cultural revolution has made it possible to end a marriage quickly with a basic form-filling exercise. He added that the stigma attached to divorce in the past has also disappeared. The judge – who presided over the bitterly-fought divorce of Sir Paul and Heather McCartney – blamed 50 years of relationship free-for-all for the spread of divorce on demand. He said the result was that 3.8million children were now left at the mercy of the courts because of the break-up of their parents. The judge, who sits in the High Court Family Division as Mr Justice Coleridge, has called repeatedly for legal reforms to clear up
the mess left by the decline of marriage. He has blamed youth crime, child abuse, drug addiction, binge drinking, truanting and bad behaviour in schools for the 'meltdown' of the family.
Pray: that the experience and wisdom of Mr Justice Coleridge will be heard and lead to reforms. (Jer.26:13a)
Divided church is poor witness
01 Feb 2011In a sermon to mark the start of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity on Tuesday, the Rev Bob Fyffe said the movement for unity had ‘transformed things for the better’. ‘It is this movement that has helped to overcome some deep-rooted enmities that have scared communities, transforming churches to be more open to each other.’ The task before believers, he said, was to be recognised as Christians by how well they had loved others. ‘To be divided as Christians is to offer poor witness to the world,’ he said. The call to Christian unity must be more than a dream. It is the living out of these high ideals that helps others see that faith can be a source of hope. The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is held each year by the church worldwide from January 18 to 25. This year’s theme is ‘All things in common’.
Pray: for unity between denominations and that differences can be overcome for the sake of the Gospel. (1Co.1:10)
Discipleship in the North of England
20 Aug 2012The Archbishop of York is inviting 120 young adults from across the north of England to Cranmer Hall for a residential conference on the 19th-20th September. It is hoped that all present will be encouraged and equipped by worshipping and praying together, sharing vision, skills, imagination, and energy - and by having the opportunity to hear some key speakers and take part in relevant and engaging seminars. Archbishop Sentamu will speak at the event on the subject of: ‘Is the Church really up for this?' There will also be contributions from Gavin Calver (National Director YFC) and Bishop Justin Welby (Bishop of Durham). The organisers pray that the Holy Spirit will use the event to direct those attending and equip them to share Christ wherever they are across the north of England. Attendance, accommodation, and food at the conference is free to those invited. If you would like to be invited please email Malcolm Macnaughton at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Pray: for a growing number of young people to take up the Gospel message and seek discipleship. (Php.2:3-4)
More: http://www.archbishopofyork.org/articles.php/2591/discipleship-in-the-north-of-england
Disappointment over nuclear disarmament
13 Jun 2010
An alliance of nine UK churches has expressed disappointment at the failure of nuclear weapons states to agree deadlines for actions on nuclear disarmament. While the churches welcomed progress made on discussions on the Middle East and a declaration by the UK on number of warheads, they were highly critical of the refusal of the nuclear powers to agree timeframes for future discussions at the end-May conference in New York. Rt Revd Stephen Cottrell, Bishop of Reading, said, ‘Nuclear weapons are a legacy of the cold war era and have little relevance to the threats that we face today’. There is a growing recognition that having one set of rules for some nations, and a different set of rules for others is unsustainable. The nine churches' campaign, entitled Now is the Time, calls on the British Government to make a commitment to achieving a world free of nuclear weapons, creating a safer future for all. Pray: that world governments will work positively to remove all nuclear weapons in the near future. (Mi.4:3) More: http://www.methodist.org.uk/index.cfm?fuseaction=opentogod.newsDetail&newsid=443
Disappointment after Queen’s speech neglects aid
10 May 2012Christian Aid has expressed its disappointment after the Queen’s Speech failed to make mention of legislation on aid spending. The Government has pledged to raise the aid budget to 0.7 per cent of gross national income from 2013, but Christian Aid’s chief political adviser, Sol Oyuela, is concerned by the delay to legislating on the commitment. ‘We welcome the Government’s commitment to raising the aid budget to 0.7 per cent from 2013, but we are very disappointed that it has yet to live up to its pledge to legislate on this,’ she said. All three parties promised to make the 0.7 per cent aid commitment a legal obligation in their manifestos at the last election. It was also mentioned in the Coalition Agreement between the Tories and the Lib Dems.
Pray: that our government would keep its pledges and remember those who are needy. (Pr.14:21)
More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/disappointment.after.queens.speech.neglects.aid/29844.htm
Disabled people call for new deal
22 Dec 2012Disabled and sick people, including actor and comedian Francesca Martinez, have launched a petition calling for an end to what they call the 'War on Welfare' (WOW) being waged by their own Government. The campaigners want an independent, cumulative impact assessment of the Coalition's controversial Welfare Reform Act, which has attracted massive opposition from charities, experts, peers, community groups, disability organisations, churches and civic groups. The activists include people with learning and mental health difficulties, their families and carers. ‘The welfare budget, and particularly benefits going to sick and disabled people, has been heavily and unfairly targeted for cuts,’ says War on Welfare. Spearheaded by actress and comedian Francesca Martinez the WOW petition aims to get 100,000 signatures to end this War On Welfare by the Government. A remarkable 2,000 people had signed the petition on the Government's own e-democracy website within a little over four hours of its launch.
Pray: that this initiative will result in an end to this war on welfare for the needy. (Ps.9:18)
More: http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/node/17654