The number of abortions has risen to more than 8 million in Great Britain since the practice was legalised, according to the latest Department of Health statistics for 2013. MPs have criticised the way abortion is increasingly used as a form of ‘contraception’, as the new figures also show more than a third, 37 per cent, of abortions for resident women were repeat abortions. In total, there were 190,800 abortions in England and Wales last year. In 2012, 33 women were found to have had at least their ninth abortion, compared to 49 last year. Responding to the statistics, Labour MP Jim Dobbin said: ‘Why, in a country which apparently abhors abortion being used as a method of contraception, do the figures for repeat abortions keep rising? The UK is a rogue state when it comes to abortion. Our abortion time limit is double that of nearly every other member of the EU.’

A scientific panel has said that controversial techniques to create three- and four-parent babies are not ‘unsafe’, but further tests need to be completed. Professor Andy Greenfield, who chaired the panel, said safety was ‘not a straightforward issue’. If Westminster approves the techniques, the UK will become the only country in the world to legalise the creation of three- or four-parent embryos. Fiona Bruce MP said: “The international community is wholly against these techniques. The UK would be setting a very dangerous precedent in adopting them and isolating itself from the rest of the world. Lord Alton of Liverpool said: ‘Given the safety concerns which have been raised, the unresolved ethical questions, and a practice which runs contrary to international consensus, it would be prudent for the UK to wait at least until these issues have been resolved before being stampeded into a decision which has such far-reaching consequences.’

Cancer patients' chances of survival could be put at risk by growing delays in the NHS carrying out tests that can diagnose the disease, experts have warned. The number of patients in England waiting longer than the recommended six weeks for investigations such as MRI and CT scans has doubled in a year. In April, the figure reached 16,981 - or 2.2% of all the patients waiting for such tests. Macmillan Cancer Support called the delays ‘worrying’ and said each hospital has a responsibility to meet the targets. But, it added, ‘this Government and the next one also need to take responsibility’. The charity's chief executive Ciaran Devane said: ‘It is extremely worrying that the proportion of people who face delays in receiving vital tests which can diagnose cancer has doubled since this time last year. Only two weeks ago we heard that more people are waiting longer to start treatment and now more people are waiting longer just to get diagnosed.’

The UK has today brought into effect a law which marks forced marriage as a criminal offence. New legislation means that anyone found guilty of forcing another person into marriage in England and Wales faces a prison sentence of up to seven years, and the law also applies to British nationals forced into marriages without their consent abroad. A proposed change in law was first announced in 2012, when Prime Minister David Cameron declared: ‘Forced marriage is abhorrent and little more than slavery. To force anyone into marriage against their will is simply wrong.’ He continued: ‘I want to send a clear and strong message: forced marriage is wrong, illegal and will not be tolerated’. Home Secretary Theresa May, who has condemned forced marriage as ‘a tragedy for each and every victim’, has now welcomed the new legislation, saying the UK is at the forefront of the campaign to end the practice, which is particularly prevalent in South Asian cultures.

The Scottish NHS has written to parents saying that all future correspondence and medical reports about their children will be shared, without their consent, with a ‘Named Person’ appointed by the State to oversee their children’s interests, reports Christian Concern for our Nation. The Children and Young People (Scotland) Bill has been described as ‘sinister’ for introducing a 'Named Person' scheme to take effect in 2016, which it is claimed will potentially criminalise good parents and undermines the family. The Archbishop Cranmer blog makes the accusation and says SMPs have ‘effectively passed a bill which nullifies parental rights and endows the state with higher baby-sitting authority’ than parents.'

The Birmingham academy trust at the centre of the so-called 'Trojan Horse' allegations was accused of running schools that took the Islamic focus too far. A highly-critical report found a classroom culture which was not welcoming to non-Muslim pupils. It described a ‘madrassa curriculum’ in personal, social, health and economic lessons, and ‘posters written in Quranic Arabic in most of the classrooms visited’. Loudspeakers were used to broadcast the call to prayer and there were posters in classrooms encouraging children to begin lessons with a Muslim prayer. There were also claims of an inappropriate external speaker being brought in to talk to pupils. In RE lessons, the few pupils taking a Christian unit in the GCSE course, rather than the Islamic Studies paper, had to ‘teach themselves’ because the teacher had to concentrate on what the majority were studying. As far back as 2010 the Department for Education was warned that Muslim hardliners were trying to take control of Birmingham schools. See: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-27476643

At this time of preparation for the Referendum, Members of the Scottish Parliament are hard pressed; keeping all their normal remit running, plus attending many extra husting meetings and trying to keep a life balance so that family is not neglected. Remember especially the front runners with the extra responsibility of every word weighed and reported in the Press. Intercessors at Pray For Scotland (who take a completely neutral stance) and whose prayer for the result of the Referendum is ‘God’s will be done in our Nation’ ask that we pray that leaders will arise who speak with authority, clarity and integrity. Christian members of the Scottish parliament include Dave Thompson, Nigel Don and John Mason (SNP); Ruth Davidson and Murdo Fraser (Conservative); Johann Lamont, Jacquie Bailie, and Anne McTaggart (Labour).

Following last week's State Opening of Parliament, Lord Falconer introduced a bill that would legalise assisted suicide. It is the latest in a number of attempts to change the law. The bill will be debated in the House of Lords at its second reading, which is expected to take place on Friday 18th July. Baroness Hollins, a top psychiatrist who has been President of both the Royal College of Psychiatrists and the British Medical Association, has spoken out and written of her concerns. Baroness Grey-Thompson, who won 11 golds at the Paralympics, has joined with Baroness Campbell of Surbiton, who has a degenerative illness, to express her deep opposition to Lord Falconer's bill. ‘Why is it that when people who are not disabled want to commit suicide, we try to talk them out of it, but when a disabled person wants to commit suicide, we focus on how we can make that possible?’

‘Misogynyst mosque supporters’ have harassed a key female witness into withdrawing from giving evidence at the megamosque public inquiry being held at the ExCel Centre in London this week. Tehmina Kazi is the Director of British Muslims for Secular Democracy and a crucial opponent of the massive fundamentalist mega-mosque proposed for West Ham in London, close to the Olympic Stadium. She withdrew from the inquiry after being pressured by members of the Muslim-run Newham Peoples Alliance (NPA) while abroad on holiday last weekend. Ms Kazi, a former project officer at the Equality & Human Rights Commission and long-time supporter of Muslim women’s rights, publicly opposed the mega-mosque project at a previous public inquiry in 2011. She has also objected to the anti-women bias of Tablighi Jamaat, the fundamentalist group behind the proposed mosque. ‘Why do Islamists always pick on women?’ said Alan Craig, director of the long-running Mega Mosque No Thanks campaign.

Religion preaches help for the poor and loving your neighbour, but now a new study has provided evidence that religion can make people more generous in their everyday lives. Research commissioned by the BBC found that people who profess a religious belief are significantly more likely to give to charity than non-believers. Sikhs and Jews emerged as the most likely to share their worldly goods with a good cause, just ahead of Christians, Hindus and Muslims. The study, carried out for the BBC's network of local radio stations, included polling by ComRes of a sample of more than 3,000 people of all faiths and none. It found that levels of generosity across the British public are strikingly high, but are highest among those with a religious faith. The Revd Dr Martyn Atkins, General Secretary of the Methodist Church, said: ‘Religious faith should motivate people to acts of generosity, and it’s good to see this reflected in these figures’.