We don't think religious worship should play any part in the formal business of the state.
We want to see parliamentary and local government meetings conducted in a manner equally welcoming to all attendees, whatever their personal beliefs.
Parliamentary prayers
Sittings in both the House of Commons and the House of Lords begin with Anglican prayers. MPs and peers stand for prayers facing the wall behind them – a practice thought to have developed due to the difficulty members would historically have faced of kneeling to pray while wearing a sword.
When the chamber is at its busiest, parliamentary prayers act as a bizarre and antiquated seat reservation system. Even MPs and peers who are slated to speak have no option but to attend prayers in order to reserve a seat.
Whilst they may be viewed by some as an important tradition, parliamentary prayers serve to assert the superiority of Christianity (and the Church of England in particular) at Westminster. This 'tradition' is inimical to a modern, pluralistic, secular democracy.
In the Scottish Parliament, Tuesday afternoon sessions begin with 'Time for Reflection', with faith and belief representatives invited to addresses members for up to four minutes. The Northern Ireland Assembly begins formal business with a period of two minutes of silent prayer or contemplation. The Welsh Assembly has adopted no such rituals.
Parliamentarians who wish to pray are free to do so. But prayers should not form part of the official business of Parliament.
Council prayers
Many local authorities in Britain also begin their meetings with prayer.
Local democracy should be equally welcoming to all sections of society, regardless of their religion or belief. Council meetings should be conducted without anyone feeling excluded, or compelled to either participate in prayers or absent themselves from part of the meeting.
Council prayers open the door to wholly unnecessary conflict and sectarian squabbles within local authorities. There is a history of local councillors being bullied and marginalised for challenging council prayers.
The absence of prayers from the formal business of meetings in no way impedes religious freedoms or denies anybody the right to pray. Conversely, organised worship in secular settings imposes worship on those who do not share the faith. A genuine commitment to freedom of religion or belief is incompatible with including acts of worship in the formal business of council meetings.
If local authorities wish to hold a moment of silent reflection at the beginning of a meeting, or if councillors wish to meet for prayers prior to the meeting, they are at liberty to do so.
Take action!
1. Write to your MP
Please enter your postcode and urge your MP to support an alternative to parliamentary prayers, to make parliament more welcoming to people of all faiths and none.
2. Share your story
Tell us why you support this campaign, and how you are personally affected by the issue. You can also let us know if you would like assistance with a particular issue - for example, if you would like to challenge prayers at your own council.
3. Join the National Secular Society
Become a member of the National Secular Society today! Together, we can separate religion and state for greater freedom and fairness.
Latest updates
East Herts Councillor resigns following vote to retain prayers at council meetings
Posted: Thu, 29 Oct 2015 12:45
A Local councillor has resigned after his motion to remove prayers from East Herts District Council meetings was defeated. The all Conservative council rejected the motion of Cllr Adrian McNeece on Wednesday night, by 42 votes to 5.
Mr McNeece's motion argued that "meetings of East Herts District Council should be conducted in a manner equally welcoming to all attendees, regardless of their individual religious beliefs or lack of belief" and that therefore, "worship should therefore play no part in the formal or informal business of council meetings, on council premises."
Mr McNeece sought to challenge the impression that the local authority "identifies with a particular religious belief" and to "ensure this council is more representative and inclusive".
Mr McNeece told Herts and Essex Observer: "The separation of government and religion is essential. I think it's extremely important and I'm extremely saddened that such a huge number of councillors voted against the motion."
In his speech, Mr McNeece argued that the inclusion of prayers undermined religious freedom by enabling a majority of councillors to impose their beliefs on others. "Whilst this may not seem like a great imposition to those who are involved with or enjoy the prayers, it can be for many others who do not believe, or who hold different faiths", he said.
Cllr Gary Jones, a Christian and deputy leader of East Herts District council, received applause after opposing the motion, despite failing to address any of the concerns raised by Cllr McNeece.
Following the vote, Mr McNeece told the NSS that he felt the tone of the debate and the defeat of the motion exposed a "pernicious link between the Conservative party and Christianity".
"I worry that such triumphalism painted local government as out of touch and potentially put off a diverse range of candidates from standing because the link between Christianity and government in this country is arguably first encountered at constituency level when selecting candidates".
Mr McNeece said he felt the defeat reflected "political expediency" on the part of Council's executive, who wished to "pander" to some Christians on the Council.
In the meeting Mr Mr McNeece referred to the 75% of respondents to a Herts and Essex Observer online poll in support of ending prayers, as of 11am Thursday morning the figure was 92%.
Stephen Evans, spokesperson for the National Secular Society, commented: "It's a terrible shame to see a public servant left feeling so alienated by a council's insistence on praying at meetings.
"The simplest way to avoid this type of unnecessary division and distraction is for councillors who wish to pray to do so before entering the chamber and not seeking to impose their religious beliefs and rituals on others."
In March 2015 the Local Government (Religious etc. Observances) Act gave a wide range of local authorities in England the power to conduct prayers and other religious functions as part of their official business. A 2012 High Court decision had previously ruled that local authorities had no power to do so.
Since March 2015 a number of local authorities have voted to end the practice, which is becoming increasingly uncommon.
A video of the East Herts District Council meeting is available here.
Council rejects prayers during meetings in “victory for common sense”
Posted: Mon, 7 Sep 2015 13:00
A bid to introduce Christian prayers during council meetings in Norfolk has met with a crushing 10-2 defeat, as one resident warned the plan was 'backwards' and "highly divisive".
Wymondham councillor Tony Holden, who proposed the idea, said "we are a Christian country" and claimed he had "been asked by several members of the public why this council does not have prayers."
However, the proposal was roundly criticised by other councillors and members of the public present at the meeting. The chairman of the meeting, Councillor Lee Hornby, said "I don't believe that the council is a religious entity and I personally I wouldn't support the recommendation."
Several councillors stood up for the neutrality and secularism of the council, with Councillor Adam Osborne warning that, if approved, the motion "could end up being divisive and could open up all sorts of issues."
The council overwhelmingly rejected the proposal, with one abstention and just two votes in favour versus ten votes against.
Councillors who voted the motion down were supported by a member of the public, Mr Pete Travis, who was quoted by local media telling the council that they "were elected to serve on a strictly secular body" and to "serve all citizens of this town" regardless of identity, race or religion.
However, during a section of the meeting open to public contributions, Barry Rooks of the evangelical Alive Church said he "could not see why" councillors wouldn't want to open their meetings with Christian prayers.
Councillor Julian Halls described the result of the vote as a "victory for common sense".
"I was elected to deal with matters of Wymondham Town management and not to attend a religious service. If I wanted to do that I would go to Church", he said.
