Author: Stephen Evans
Schools aren’t there to save the church
Posted: Thu, 22 Jul 2021 by Stephen Evans
The Church of England's new evangelical missional strategy should lead us to question its entitlement to proselytise in schools, argues Stephen Evans. Read More »
Evidence and compassion should trump dogma in assisted dying debate
Posted: Thu, 24 Jun 2021 by Stephen Evans
As politicians again grapple with assisted dying, we should beware attempts to impose a religious worldview on those who want the option of alleviating their suffering, argues Stephen Evans. Read More »
The outcome of the Batley investigation is a surrender of liberal principles
Posted: Thu, 27 May 2021 by Stephen Evans
As an investigation into the Batley Grammar affair concludes, Stephen Evans says we should recognise the censorious precedent it has set. Read More »
The DfE must show leadership when religious hardliners turn on schools
Posted: Thu, 06 May 2021 by Stephen Evans
The start of an investigation into the Batley Grammar affair raises questions over the government's willingness to ensure assertive religious voices don't dictate what happens in classrooms, says Stephen Evans. Read More »
Faith groups have no business inspecting schools
Posted: Fri, 30 Apr 2021 by Stephen Evans
Publicly funded school inspections which enable clerics to exert undue influence should have no place in a modern education system, argues Stephen Evans. Read More »
Regressive religious demands shouldn't hold sway over political decisions
Posted: Thu, 15 Apr 2021 by Stephen Evans
Much of a pre-election letter from Scotland's Catholic bishops highlights the risks of allowing religious dogma to dictate public policy, says Stephen Evans. Read More »
A lesson in blasphemy
Posted: Fri, 26 Mar 2021 by Stephen Evans
After a teacher was suspended for showing cartoons of Muhammad in class, NSS CEO Stephen Evans says we shouldn't accept a religious veto on critical enquiry in the classroom. Read More »
Women in NI should have the same abortion rights as other UK citizens
Posted: Wed, 24 Mar 2021 by Stephen Evans
Other people's religious beliefs shouldn't be allowed to continue to thwart women's access to safe and accessible abortion services in Northern Ireland, argues Stephen Evans. Read More »
The lockdown exemption for communal worship represents a dangerous double standard
Posted: Tue, 05 Jan 2021 by Stephen Evans
With the country again plunged into a strict lockdown, Stephen Evans questions the rationale behind and wisdom of an exemption for religious worship in England. Read More »
All I want for Christmas is freedom of and from religion
Posted: Fri, 18 Dec 2020 by Stephen Evans
Opponents often erect a straw man of secularism to justify demands for religious privilege. But freedom of religion must come with freedom from religion, says Stephen Evans. Read More »
Religion is not a justification for discrimination
Posted: Tue, 08 Dec 2020 by Stephen Evans
A shadow minister was wrong to say religious registrars should be able to opt out of providing same-sex marriages. And her comments are a reminder that we don't need a ministerial office for faith, says Stephen Evans. Read More »
Church and state should be separate
Posted: Tue, 03 Nov 2020 by Stephen Evans
Ahead of the NSS's 2020 Bradlaugh Lecture on the subject, Stephen Evans says the disestablishment of the Church of England is right in principle and could benefit church and state alike. Read More »
Those providing public services – including religious groups – should respect reasonable boundaries
Posted: Thu, 08 Oct 2020 by Stephen Evans
Following a call for a greater role for religion in public services, Stephen Evans argues that any expansion of faith-based provision mustn't see equality and fair treatment relegated to secondary or dispensable matters. Read More »
The Scottish hate crime bill is a threat to free and open debate
Posted: Mon, 21 Sep 2020 by Stephen Evans
As ministers consider changing Scotland's hate crime bill to address free expression concerns, Stephen Evans says their insistence to date that the bill won't undermine legitimate debate has been unconvincing. Read More »
Why make a spectacle out of religion in the courtroom?
Posted: Fri, 24 Jul 2020 by Stephen Evans
Stephen Evans argues that the current system of religious oaths and affirmations should be replaced by a universal secular declaration of the solemn duty to tell the truth. Read More »
We must protect pupils’ educational rights where schools consistently fail
Posted: Sun, 28 Jun 2020 by Stephen Evans
Religious schools that censor textbooks, teach creationism and limit pupils' chances aren't respecting the right to a quality education. The government shouldn't let them repeatedly fail inspections, says Stephen Evans. Read More »
Places of worship shouldn’t reopen prematurely
Posted: Thu, 04 Jun 2020 by Stephen Evans
As a group of religious leaders threatens legal action over the closure of places of worship during the coronavirus crisis, Stephen Evans says public health must be the priority in deciding when to reopen them. Read More »
Will Wales lead the way in reforming Religious Education?
Posted: Tue, 02 Jun 2020 by Stephen Evans
The Welsh government's plans to reform RE risk being a missed opportunity for more radical reform of the way we approach religion in schools, argues Stephen Evans. Read More »
Why respect religious demands to keep pupils in the dark?
Posted: Tue, 28 Apr 2020 by Stephen Evans
After a select committee chair urged more leeway for a faith school which has long censored textbooks, Stephen Evans says politicians with responsibility for education should stop pandering to religious interests. Read More »
The bishops’ bench is an affront to democracy. Let’s scrap it
Posted: Fri, 31 Jan 2020 by Stephen Evans
A new bill proposes to end Church of England bishops' automatic right to sit in parliament. This religious privilege is part of an unjust status quo and should be addressed, says Stephen Evans. Read More »
Promote religious freedom in schools: abolish the worship requirement
Posted: Wed, 22 Jan 2020 by Stephen Evans
A private member's bill to replace compulsory worship with inclusive assemblies should prompt the government to reform the archaic collective worship law, says Stephen Evans. Read More »
Don’t let controlling ultra-Orthodox Jewish groups undermine sex education
Posted: Fri, 03 Jan 2020 by Stephen Evans
Sex education empowers young people. The government must stand up to those making faux religious freedom arguments in an attempt to stop them receiving it, argues Stephen Evans. Read More »
Medical regulators shouldn’t let doctors push religion on patients
Posted: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 by Stephen Evans
The General Medical Council has decided not to pursue a case against a GP who was accused of pushing religion on a vulnerable patient. Stephen Evans warns against allowing this exploitative behaviour. Read More »
Why the blind spot when it comes to faith schools?
Posted: Fri, 22 Nov 2019 by Stephen Evans
Politicians need to end their fetishisation of faith schools and face the fact that a religiously divided education system is unfit for the future, argues Stephen Evans. Read More »
Election 2019: pledges that should be in the parties’ manifestos
Posted: Tue, 05 Nov 2019 by Stephen Evans
As the UK's political parties consider their manifestos for the upcoming election, Stephen Evans outlines a series of secularist pledges they should include to advance freedom, fairness and equal citizenship. Read More »
