Podcasts
Beware the government’s “new normal” of faith-based public services - Opinion Out Loud Ep 014
Posted: Tue, 26th Oct 2021
A new government fund exclusively for faith groups threatens to embed religious privilege into public services, warns Megan Manson.
Ep 59: The advancement of religion
Posted: Tue, 19th Oct 2021
Should organisations be entitled to tax breaks and other privileges solely on the basis that they 'advance religion'?
Under the Charities Act 2011, any organisation can register as a charity if one of its purposes – or even its only purpose – is 'the advancement of religion'. But should this be enough to entitle an organisation to public funding, along with the reputational boost that comes from being a charity? What counts as a 'religion' anyway, and why does it exclude non-religious worldviews such as humanism? And what happens if the ideology espoused by that religion conflicts with widely shared values, or the law?
In this episode, Emma Park discusses these questions with Megan Manson, Head of Policy and Research at the National Secular Society, and co-author of the 2019 report, For the public benefit? The case for removing 'the advancement of religion' as a charitable purpose.
Megan also gives an update on charities recently brought to light by the NSS whose only or main charitable purpose is the advancement of religion. Some of these have openly advocated unpalatable views, from extremism and jihad to misogyny to gay conversion therapy.
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Podcast produced by Emma Park for the National Secular Society (2021). All rights reserved.
Schools should be liberated from the compulsion of worship - Opinion Out Loud Ep 013
Posted: Tue, 12th Oct 2021
As a bill to reform collective worship progresses in parliament, Stephen Evans argues that the time has come for lawmakers to recognise that laws mandating worship have no place in modern Britain.
Ep 58: Reforming marriage law
Posted: Tue, 5th Oct 2021
What's wrong with marriage law in England and Wales, and how can it be made fit for purpose in the twenty-first century?
In January, the Law Commission completed a consultation on the reform of weddings law. They are due to publish the results at the end of the year. In this episode, Emma Park is joined by three guests, who together discuss some of the main problems with the laws surrounding marriages and their consequences in England and Wales, and the ways in which they need to be reformed. These problems include the law's current focus on buildings and the assumption that a wedding ceremony (registry office aside) should involve some sort of religion or belief. Another important topic is the extent to which unregistered religious marriages in minority communities are exploited to give one party an unfair advantage.
Russell Sandberg, Professor of Law at Cardiff University, has recently published a book entitled Religion and Marriage Law: The Need for Reform. See his blog post on marriage law.
Pragna Patel is the founder of Southall Black Sisters, a non-for-profit, secular and inclusive organisation that supports the rights of Asian and African-Caribbean women in Britain. See her blog post on 'Shariafication by stealth'.
Philip Spicksley is an independent celebrant and Chair of the Wedding Celebrancy Commission, as well as President of the Association of Independent Celebrants.
The NSS campaigns for legally binding weddings to be equally open to all, regardless of religion or sexual orientation.
Watch this episode on YouTube | Direct MP3 Link | Transcripts
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Podcast produced by Emma Park for the National Secular Society (2021). All rights reserved.
Ep 57: Secularism around the world: Hungary
Posted: Tue, 21st Sep 2021
How far has Viktor Orbán's illiberal Christian regime undermined secularism in Hungary?
As part of our 'secularism around the world' series, this episode is about secularism in Hungary and the challenges it faces from Orbán's government. Emma Park is joined by Gáspár Békés, a secularist campaigner, youth rights activist and secretary of the Hungarian Atheist Society. Gáspár was recently dismissed from his job in the Mayor's Office of the Budapest City Hall for publishing articles critical of Christian practices, after a targeted campaign by Christian right-wing extremists.
Gáspár explains why church and state are so closely intertwined in modern Hungary, and how Orbán has relied on illiberal Christian values to clamp down on LGBT and reproductive rights. He also discusses the problems with Hungary's faith schools, and the reasons for the Catholic Church's continuing involvement in child protection services, despite abuse scandals.
Watch this episode on YouTube | Direct MP3 Link | Transcripts
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Podcast produced by Emma Park for the National Secular Society (2021). All rights reserved.
Ep 56: The Assisted Dying Bill 2021
Posted: Tue, 7th Sep 2021
The Assisted Dying Bill 2021 is likely to have its second reading this autumn. But how far should the law permit those who wish to die to be assisted by others in doing so?
In this episode, Emma Park speaks to two guests about the details of this private member's bill, its history and underlying principles.
Molly Meacher, Baroness Meacher, (02:13) is the promoter of the bill in the House of Lords and Chair of Dignity in Dying, a campaign group that supports AD for terminally ill patients with no more than six months to live. She discusses the key provisions of the bill and the rationale behind its numerous safeguards.
A.C. Grayling (19:24) is a philosopher, Master of the New College of the Humanities and a former Professor of Philosophy at Birkbeck. In a recent article for The Times, he argued that the right to be given help to end one's life should potentially be extended far beyond the case of terminally ill patients. He explores the considerations for and against reforming the law, and argues that the right to die is derived from the principle of personal autonomy.
Watch this episode on YouTube | Direct MP3 Link | Transcripts
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Podcast produced by Emma Park for the National Secular Society (2021). All rights reserved.
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