
blogs


Adult stem cell research leaps forward whilst embryonic stem cell work slows
It has been an amazing week in the field of stem cell technology with five big stories hitting the…

Should ‘gay’ Christians be true to their feelings?
Last Wednesday’s Metro (a London newspaper) (p35) ran the story of ‘a burly rugby player’ who ‘suffered…

Why legalising assisted suicide inevitably also legalises euthanasia
The Falconer Commission on ‘Assisted Dying’ is about to be put out of its misery when it reports…

New evidence that patients in ‘Permanent Vegetative State’ may be consciously aware
A method of communicating with brain damaged patients who appear to be in a permanent vegetative state…

New review highlights positive benefits of marriage
The Family Education Trust has just highlighted a report from the Institute of American values which…

Opt in or opt out for organ donation? Pressure grows for change
There have been growing demands this week for the introduction of a system of organ donation across…

Euthanasia of woman with advanced dementia in Netherlands sounds loud warning to Britain
A 64-year-old woman suffering severe senile dementia has been euthanised in the Netherlands – even…

Practising compassion and justice
Having just got back from a two day conference in the Netherlands on researching and teaching spiritual…

Some good news from Europe
The economic crisis in the Eurozone is dominating headlines, but it has not all been bad news from…

Another study showing a strong link between abortion and mental health problems
I’m grateful to AAPLOG for drawing my attention to yet another study showing a strong link between…

Pressure grows on David Cameron to support ‘Robin Hood Tax’ ahead of G20 summit
Last week I was one of 70 organisational leaders who signed a letter to Prime Minister David Cameron…
College climbs down over ban on Christian doctors and nurses training in sexual and reproductive health
Doctors and nurses wishing to practise in sexual and reproductive health have been granted more liberty to exercise freedom of conscience under new guidelines published earlier this year. The Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare (FSRH), a faculty of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG), has relaxed its stance on conscience in new guidelines issued […]
DNA editing – a significant advance but many questions remained unanswered
You can see my Sky News interview on this story here. Scientists have, for the first time shown that it is possible to correct gene mutations in human embryos successfully using a gene editing tool potentially opening the door to treatment for over 10,000 single gene disorders. The US and the South Korean researchers used a new technology […]
Ideology or Evidence (part two)? The battle over abortion statistics
Having blogged about the triumph of ideology over evidence in relation to the campaign in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland for presumed consent to organ donation, I can now report on a campaign where evidence triumphed over ideology. This one is in relation to the reporting and publicity of abortion outcomes. To give some background: […]
Ideology or evidence? The battle over presumed consent to organ donation
The debate about changing the law on organ donation is one of a number of controversial issues where I believe that we are increasingly seeing the triumph of ideology over evidence. A campaign to introduce ‘presumed consent’ to organ donation on death has been gaining momentum for some time and now similar legislation to […]
Charlie Gard: Emotion has trumped trust in today’s society, but parents and professionals can work together
The tragic case of Charlie Gard, and the desperate efforts of his parents Connie Yates and Chris Gard to do everything to give him a chance of life have gripped the national and international media. The case raises profound and troubling questions about the power of medical technology, the duties and responsibilities of doctors […]
Why Boots chemist should not have capitulated to pressure from BPAS over emergency contraception
Over the weekend I waded into the debate on whether Boots should reduce the price of the so-called ‘morning-after pill’ and criticised the high street chemist for ‘capitulating in the face of political pressure’. Let me explain why. Boots had originally defied calls to slash the price of ‘emergency contraception’ – with its chief pharmacist saying it did […]
Family planning – ‘summit of a mess’
Last week’s London Family Planning Summit was, on the surface, a ‘successful’ follow up to the 2012 Family Planning Summit, which aimed to increase access to contraception for 120 million women. US$2.5 billion was pledged by governments and other donors to ‘improve and expand the reach of reproductive health services to women and girls in […]
The Conway Case – a change in the law to allow assisted suicide is dangerous and unnecessary
A 67-year-old Shropshire man with motor neurone disease (MND) is seeking to overturn the law banning assisted suicide. Noel Conway is backed by the former Voluntary Euthanasia Society (now rebranded Dignity in Dying (DID)), whose lawyers will argue that the current blanket ban on assisted suicide under the Suicide Act is incompatible with his rights under […]
Troubled times: Is God giving Britain over?
The rollercoaster journey of the last twelve months has left many UK citizens feeling dislocated and anxious about the future of our country. Political events – Brexit, Trump, a snap general election, a hung parliament, confidence and supply arrangements and the Queen’s speech – have laid bare deep divisions between old and young, right and […]
A personal response to the BMA vote on abortion
I was saddened to hear that the BMA have voted to recommend the decriminalisation of abortion. Having lost a baby at 29 weeks, I know only too well the effect that these laws have on those, who like me, refuse a termination and who lose a child. In the summer of 2015, at 23 weeks […]
Reflections on the BMA’s vote to ‘decriminalise’ abortion – ten key observations
Last week delegates at the BMA annual representative meeting (ARM) voted to support the decriminalisation of abortion. You can listen to the whole debate here and five brilliant two-minute speeches against the motion here. Two previous blog posts give the background in more detail here and here. The opposition speakers spoke with grace, eloquence and […]
How should Christians respond to the transgender issue?
You might think that there are few things more self-evident than the fact that human beings are divided into two distinct types, male and female. Females have XX chromosomes, female hormones, breasts, ovaries, wombs and vaginas. Males have XY chromosomes, male hormones, testes and penises. Don’t they? But now we’re being told that gender is […]