Findings from the 2011 census for England and Wales have revealed the number of people who say they are Christian has dropped dramatically from 72% to 59%. The figures published today by the Office for National Statistics also show the number of people who say they have no religion has risen from 15% to 25%.

The National Secular Society has criticised the intemperate rant at the Prime Minister, widely reported in the media, by the RC Bishop of Motherwell, Joseph Devine.

The German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung has commissioned an opinion poll to find out what Germans think about Muslims. Generally, the results are regarded as "catastrophic".

Almost half – 49 per cent – of those surveyed earlier this year by the Institute of Education, University of London believe that there is 'definitely' or 'probably' life after death.

The United Nations General Assembly has passed a resolution condemning female genital mutilation, the first time the practice has been denounced at such a high level.

According to a Pew Forum study released last week, 8 out of 45 European countries have blasphemy laws on their books while 35 of them have laws against the defamation of religion in general or hate speech against members of a faith.

News that the Scout Association has decided to review its policy of excluding people without a religious belief has been welcomed by the National Secular Society.

The Dutch parliament has accepted a motion that will abolish the law that makes it an offence to insult God. Supporters of the motion say that they are confident that they have enough support for it to pass easily.

The Reform Section 5 campaign has taken a major step forward with the tabling of an amendment in Parliament to remove the word "insulting" from section 5 of the Public Order Act.

Poland's highest court, the Constitutional Tribunal, ruled this week that the ritual slaughter of animals by religious groups violates the country's constitution and animal protection laws.

An overwhelming majority of Turkish people want secularism to be included in the country's new charter, a recent survey conducted by KONDA for the Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV) has revealed.

BBC Religious programming will go into overdrive this Christmas with the national broadcaster announcing copious amounts of "carols, festive music, contemplation, conversation and live worship across BBC Television and Radio."

A Muslim radio station in Leeds has been fined £4,000 by the media regulator Ofcom after one of its presenters said that homosexuals should be tortured and beaten up.

The Presidents of the European Council and European Commission today heard a plea for greater protection for pregnant women's right to life following the death of Savita Halappanavar in Ireland.

A new report from Oxford University, which says that teachers are afraid to teach religious education in case they are perceived as "evangelising", has been questioned today by the National Secular Society.

The Liberal Democrat peer Baroness Falkner has given a spirited defence of secularism during an otherwise largely deferential debate about the role of religion in public life.

The mayor of one of Britain's poorest boroughs is providing £2 million of funding to religious groups to help improve places of worship.

Tickets for the 2013 Secularist of the Year event are now on sale. Nominate your Secularist of the Year!

Czech MPs have voted by a narrow margin to let the Catholic Church reclaim properties seized during the 1940s and 1950s by the Communist regime.

The Austrian bishops conference held its plenary meeting in Brussels this month because it wants to be nearer the EU – where it hopes to increase its influence.