Suella Braverman is facing a backlash after claiming police 'play favourites' with pro-Palestinian protests. Downing Street did not clear the controversial article in which the home secretary criticised the policing of pro-Palestinian marches in London. The prime minister is facing calls to sack Ms Braverman from her position in Cabinet from top Labour shadow ministers and the leader of the Liberal Democrats. The backlash comes after the publication of Ms Braverman's opinion piece in The Times, in which she accused the police of having a softer approach towards left-wing protests. A spokesman for Rishi Sunak said, 'The Prime Minister continues to believe that the police will operate without fear or favour’. Members of the Tory party have also attempted to distance themselves from her 'inflammatory rhetoric', with transport secretary Mark Harper actively disagreeing with her on Times Radio. She also criticised plans for a protest in London on Armistice Day, repeating allegations that its organisers were linked to Hamas and describing them as 'disturbingly reminiscent of Ulster'. She also claimed that pro-Palestinian mobs are 'largely ignored, even when clearly breaking the law'. Earlier, the PM accepted that the planned march on Saturday would go ahead despite opposition from himself and the home secretary.
The Christian Institute, through its Let Us Pray campaign, is defending the normal activities of churches against potential government bans on so-called 'conversion therapy’. This term encompasses various practices, including abusive ones already illegal. LGBT campaigners seek to criminalise even biblical preaching, prayer, pastoral care, and parenting that does not endorse liberal theology. The Christian Institute has engaged solicitors in England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland to prepare for a potential judicial review if such bans restrict religious freedom. Legal advice warns that an overly broad ban could breach the European Convention on Human Rights and lead to legal challenges against the government. The Christian Institute has previously succeeded in judicial reviews against UK governments in 2007 and 2016. However,the controversial legislation was left out of the King's speech: see
Council costs warning as fostering places fall
09 Nov 2023A decline in available fostering places has led to local councils wasting substantial amounts of money, warns a carers' organisation. Capacity issues can force councils to place children in more costly residential homes, according to sector bodies, but the Government claims to be investing £27 million to improve fostering place availability. Official Ofsted statistics indicate that there were 72,770 approved mainstream fostering places in England as of 31 March, 8% less than on the same date in 2019. The decline is primarily due to an 11% reduction in the number of mainstream local authority households, down to 19,835. Meanwhile, the number of independent fostering agency households has risen by less than 1%, and 'family and friends' households have increased from 6,930 to 8,400. Foster Support CEO Jane Collins emphasised the importance of retaining foster carers, both for financial reasons and to maintain their experience and training. However, she noted that local authorities are struggling in this regard.
Russia sentences another Jehovah’s Witness
09 Nov 2023A court in the Chelyabinsk region of Russia has sentenced a Jehovah’s Witness (JW) follower to seven years in prison on charges of ‘extremism’. Yevgeny Bushev had been under house arrest for over a year on allegations of continuing ‘the illegal activities of a banned religious organisation’. In 2017 the Supreme Court declared the JW movement to be extremist, banning its estimated 400 branches across the country. Bushev is the 15th JW follower from the region to be prosecuted. The prosecution’s witness was an employee of the National Guard (Rosgvardia) who had ‘shown interest in the Bible’: a linguistic examination concluded that Bushev had ‘tempted’ him to accept the JW faith when responding to questions about religion. International human rights NGOs have condemned Russia’s crackdown on JW followers in the years since the ban, and in June 2022 the European Court of Human Rights said that Russia had violated over 1,400 followers' right to religious freedom.
Ukraine accuses Russia of hitting civilian ship
09 Nov 2023On 8 November Ukraine said that a Russian missile had struck a civilian ship while it was moored in a port in the Black Sea region of Odessa, killing a pilot and injuring four others. The missile hit the ship’s superstructure, which includes the command cabin. The ship was travelling under the Liberian flag, and the three wounded crew members were citizens of the Philippines. If confirmed, the attack would be the first time that Russian forces have hit a civilian vessel sailing near the Odessa region since Moscow pulled out of a UN-brokered deal in July which allowed Ukraine to export its grain through the Black Sea. In another incident, on 3 November, Russia targeted a military medals ceremony, killing at least a dozen men. The Ukrainian army has been criticised for organising an event involving so many soldiers in such a public and old-fashioned way. See
The sixth Paris Peace Forum, on 10 and 11 November, will focus on four different topics. Emmanuel Macron, along with Barbadian PM Mia Mottley and several African leaders, will assess the progress of the ‘Paris Pact for People and the Planet’, launched in June, which aims to provide substantial funding to combat poverty and climate change, in preparation for December’s COP28 in Dubai. An appeal will be launched to address the ‘collapse’ of ‘all ice surfaces on a global scale.’States affected by glacier loss, such as Nepal and Kyrgyzstan, will participate, as will China and India. Although Russia, a major Arctic actor, will not participate due to the conflict in Ukraine, the Elysée asserts that this will not be an obstacle to cooperation between other countries. Macron will also preside over the fifth Christchurch Call Summit, launched with New Zealand after the terrorist attack in Christchurch in 2019, aiming to enhance efforts to ‘combat terrorist and violent extremist content online’. Another top priority for Macron is to regulate digital platforms and artificial intelligence.
Latest news from Gaza
09 Nov 2023Israel will begin to implement four-hour ’humanitarian pauses’ in northern Gaza each day to allow people to flee, the White House has said. A spokesman called the move a step in the right direction, and said the USA wanted the pauses to continue as long as they are needed. Israel has committed to announcing each window at least three hours in advance. The US still does not support a ceasefire in Gaza at this time, but aims to see at least 150 humanitarian trucks entering the strip each day. Fierce fighting has continued, and the health ministry in Gaza (controlled by Hamas) says that the number of Palestinians killed is now more than 10,000. Meanwhile, Islamic Jihad has released a video of two hostages, and offered to release them if certain conditions were met. The hostages criticised Benjamin Netanyahu; it was not certain if they were reading from a script. A humanitarian conference in Paris today called for a total ceasefire: see
On 6 November more than twenty people, including women and children, were killed in an attack by English-speaking separatists in western Cameroon. Since the end of 2016, this area (populated mainly by the English-speaking minority) has seen a deadly conflict between pro-independence armed groups and the security forces. Each side has been accused of crimes against civilians by international NGOs and the UN. The government said that the ‘terrorists’ attacked using firearms and traditional weapons, and burnt down around ten houses. A resident thought the attack was probably made on that day because it was the anniversary of Paul Biya's accession to power as president; he added that a meeting of the RDPC (the all-powerful presidential party) had been scheduled to take place nearby. Cameroon, which has a population of nearly 30 million, has been ruled with an iron fist for 41 years by Biya.