Only a quarter of people under 65 with mental health problems are receiving care, according to a landmark report that is highly critical of the lack of access to therapy. The authors of the report, led by academics at the London School of Economics, say those who cannot get treatment are essentially being discriminated against. They say that mental health now accounts for almost half the total burden of ill health suffered by people under 65. However, they found that only a quarter of children and adults of working age received treatment, due in part to poor provision. Ministers have promised to raise the profile of mental health services - using such slogans as ‘no health without mental health’, but the report’s authors want them to back up their words with action. They say: ‘The under-treatment of people with crippling mental illnesses is the most glaring case of health inequality in our country.

Pray: for all those affected by such illness and their needs may be better met. (3Jn.1:2)

More: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/9334977/Mental-health-shockingly-under-treated-claims-report.html

A group of 11 men plied girls as young as 13 with drink and drugs so they could use them for sex, a court has heard. The offences are said to have happened in and around Rochdale, Greater Manchester, in 2008 and 2009. Liverpool Crown Court heard how the men, aged between 22 and 59 and from Oldham and Rochdale, ‘acted together to sexually exploit the girls’. All deny conspiracy to engage in sexual activity with a child under 16. Rachel Smith, opening the case for the prosecution, said: ‘No child should be exploited as these girls say they were.’ The Court heard that some of the girls were raped and physically assaulted and some were forced to have sex with ‘several men in a day, several times a week’. Miss Smith said the girls were given alcohol, food and money in return for sex and there were times when violence was used. The Court was told that some of the defendants also took payments from other men to whom they supplied the girls for sex.

Pray: that the authorities and the justice system would come down hard on the perpetrators of this crime. (Ps.96:13)

More: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-17117530

Cross community campaigners for social cohesion in Newham have condemned the decision of a government planning inspector to allow Islamic group, Tablighi Jamaat, permission to breach planning laws. In a ruling, the inspector authorised the radical group to continue using the current temporary mosque on the site of their proposed Olympic mega-mosque at West Ham. Local opposition association Newham Concern say the decision will provide succour to Islamic radicals. ‘For years Tablighi Jamaat have deliberately flouted building regulations and planning laws’, said Alan Craig, Newham Concern’s campaign director and former leader of the Opposition on Newham Council for the Christian Peoples Alliance party: ‘After much delay and procrastination Newham Council at last took the right action and told them to move off site. But the Planning Inspector has overturned this and apparently decided that illegality pays. They can now stay on site with temporary planning permission for a further two years.’ (See Prayer Alert 06-2011)

Pray: that this decision will be over-ruled. (Pr.29:26)

More: http://www.cpaparty.org.uk/?page=news&id=383

In an article in the British Medical Journal two medical ethicists said doctors should be allowed to kill disabled or even unwanted newborn babies because they are ‘not actual persons’. They argue that parents should have the choice to end the lives of their children shortly after they are born because, at this stage, they are morally irrelevant’ and have ‘no moral right to life.’ And, ‘Infanticide is no different morally to abortion since both a foetus and a newborn baby were only ‘potential persons’. Rev Joanna Jepson said the article highlights ‘false ethical assumption made by many pro-choice groups, that abortion was morally justified because the child was still in the womb.’ Lord Alton said it is profoundly shocking to see how opinion-formers within the medical profession have ditched the professional belief of the healer to uphold the sanctity of human life for this impoverished and inhumane defence of child destruction.

Pray: for people to recognise the distorted thinking in the justification of post-natal abortion and to reject it completely. (Mt.19:14)

More: http://www.christiantoday.co.uk/article/christians.reject.afterbirth.abortion/29416.htm

A GMC Investigatory Committee has decided to continue to pursue the case against Dr Richard Scott, the Kent GP accused by a patient of sharing his faith in a one-to-one consultation, despite the witness not being at the hearing and showing an ‘unconditional disinclination to attend’. The case has now been temporarily adjourned by the GMC's Investigatory Committee whilst another attempt is made to get the complainant to attend. With no witness at the hearing this week, Dr Scott was not able to cross-examine and challenge the evidence of the complainant on what was allegedly said between the two individuals in the consulting room. Concerns have been raised that without the chance to cross-examine, any doctor would be made extremely vulnerable to allegations. (See Prayer Alert 21-2011)

Pray: for Dr Scott and pray that the GMC would be granted true wisdom. (Ps.89:21-22)

More: http://www.christianconcern.com/our-concerns/religious-freedom/gmc-medical-council-case-dr-richard-scott

An “unhealthy ‘me, me, me’ culture” which grew up in the 1980s is still “poisoning” community life in Britain, according to the Archbishop of York. In a reference to Margaret Thatcher, Dr John Sentamu said: “There is such a thing as society, and we all have our small part to play in making things better. We are interdependent beings living in community.” Dr Sentamu made his remarks as he launched a new book, “John Sentamu's Faith Stories” which follows 20 people who have made major contributions to their local communities. He said people should follow their example and “stop moaning and start doing something positive”. He added: “The unhealthy “me, me, me” culture that grew up in 1980s, has threatened to poison our relationships and our sense of community ever since. “The only way to build a wholesome society with a future, is for people to live differently, unselfishly and with hope in their hearts.

Pray: for all of us to recognise our role in a caring society. (Gal.5:14)

More: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/9873943/Me-me-me-culture-of-the-1980s-poisoning-society-warns-Sentamu.html

Married couples will be in the minority in little more than a generation, a new report has claimed. The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) found marriage was increasingly the preserve of the middle and upper classes, while only about 50 per cent of new parents on low incomes were married this rose to nearly 80 per cent for couples earning £21,000 By 2050, families headed by married couples will be in the minority, according to the think tank set up by Iain Duncan Smith, the Work and Pensions Secretary. The CSJ criticised the Government’s ‘failure’ to do more to tackle family breakdown, saying it was ‘deeply dismayed by the lack of progress’ since the Coalition was formed in 2010. Tim Loughton, until recently Minister for Children, said ‘the Government needs to get family policy back on track and ‘rediscover’ its commitment to family stability. ‘We fail to do so at our peril, socially and economically.’

Pray: for the ‘family’ as a unit and for the Government to provide much stronger support for families. (Pr.18:22)

More: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/9593369/Married-couples-will-be-in-the-minority-by-2050.html

The Archbishop of York Dr John Sentamu has praised the institution of marriage, and warned of the danger of it being hidden away ‘for fear of offending or sounding self-righteous’. Writing in the Telegraph, in advance of the Royal Wedding, the Archbishop also warned that more and more people seem to be wary of the commitment which marriage requires. Commenting on the growing trend of cohabitation before marriage, the Archbishop said it is common in these times and, quoting his daughter, people ‘want to test whether the milk is good before they buy the cow.’ He said: ‘Discovering the depth and enduring meaning of love is the goal and prize of every relationship. Marriage in Britain, whether in church or a register office, is a pact for life made between one man and one woman’. Dr Sentamu said he had married many cohabiting couples and emphasised that married couples are more likely to stay together than cohabiting couples.

Pray: that marriage would once more be acknowledged as central to family life. (Heb.13:4)

More: http://www.ionainstitute.org/index.php?id=1436

Current marriage tax break proposals could be seen as an ‘empty gesture’ and should be paid at a much higher rate, a group of faith leaders and political activists have warned. In a letter to the Sunday Telegraph, politicians have been urged to back the transferable tax allowance as ‘a sensible first step’ to counter the ‘devastating trend of family breakdown’. But the leaders, Bishop Nazir-Ali, Lord Singh, director of the network of Sikh organisations, Robert Woollard, chairman of Conservative Grassroots and others, called for all political parties to ensure the tax break is ‘meaningful’ by making it worth more than the ‘low level’ of £150. The letter said the introduction of the marriage tax break is ‘long overdue’. The Conservatives promised to bring in a transferable tax allowance, which would save married couples £150 when one spouse stays at home, in their election manifesto in 2010.

Pray: that the government will look closer at the decisions to bring in a transferable tax allowance. (Pr.2:9)

More: http://www.christian.org.uk/news/marriage-tax-break-at-150-not-enough-say-faith-leaders/