The sedate environment of the House of Lords descended into farce yesterday when Baroness Neville-Rolfe, Minister of State for the Cabinet Office, responded to questions on the Economic Activities of Public Bodies Bill (Anti-Boycott Bill). An extraordinary exchange demonstrated only too clearly why …
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The View from a Cupboard in Parliament
![A portion of a wooden door. A sepia portrait photo of a woman is screwed to the door in a brass-coloured circular frame. A ribbon featuring the Suffrage colours (pink, white, green) is diagonally across the lower part of the photo. Below the photo is a brass plaque with an inscription: In loving memory of Emily Wilding Davison. In this broom cupboard Emily Wilding Davison hid herself, illegally, during the night of the 1911 census. She was a brave suffragette campaigning for votes for women at a time when Parliament denied them that right. In this way, she was able to record her address on the night of that [the rest of the plaque is not visible but the text continues:] census as being the House of Commons: thus making her claim to the same political rights as men. Emily Wilding Davison died in June 1913 from injuries sustained when she threw herself under the King's horse at the Derby to draw public attention to the injustice suffered by women. By such means was democracy won for the people of Britain. Notice place here by Tony Benn MP. “I must tell you, Mr Speaker that I am going to put a plaque in the House, I shall have it made myself and screwed on the door of the broom cupboard in the Crypt.](https://www.pbeta7.co.uk/app/uploads/2024/02/35906576123_dbc00b3025.jpg)
The Vote and The Future This year, alongside working for JPIT I get to work for an MP, and spend half of my week in the Houses of Parliament. As I walk around Parliament to meetings, committee hearings or debates, I am frequently struck by how the history of our democracy is reflected in …
Good news for the New Year: A new agreement to curb tax dodging
When you heard Big Ben strike midnight on 31st December, was your first thought that “this marks the moment when international tax laws change to make it harder for multinationals to avoid tax”? If, inexplicably, you had other priorities at New Year, it is worth taking time now to celebrate. The …
Introducing Nathan McGuire
In the autumn of 2016, I embarked on an early morning journey to Calais with my tutor, Simon Jones, to visit 'the jungle', a place I'd heard much about at Spurgeon’s College. Stepping out of the car, the reality hit hard. It was wet, muddy, and bitterly cold. The air carried a mix of familiar food …
Universal Declaration of Human Rights – 75 years on
What is the Declaration and where did it come from? The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) was written in 1948, following the devastation of the Second World War and the atrocities and absolute horror of the Holocaust. The United Nations was established in 1945, and the UDHR was …
Faith in human rights: Our common journey as global citizens
This week begin celebrations of 75 years of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). We may not have much day to day awareness of UDHR or be able to quote any of its 30 articles, but we all have benefited enormously from its adoption by the UN General Assembly in 1948. So, what has been the …
COP28 – Benchmarks for success
King Charles has opened the COP28 Climate Summit in the United Arab Emirates with the following words: I pray with all my heart that COP28 will be another critical turning point towards genuine transformational action at a time when, already, as scientists have been warning for so long, we are …
The Autumn Statement will not halt growing poverty and destitution
Our Churches have called for concerted action to turn the tide on poverty and put us on the path to a poverty-free Britain. Despite the Chancellor’s upbeat tone, the Autumn Statement offered little sign of this message yet being heeded. 14.4 million people in the UK are currently experiencing …
Why must every social security announcement feature a big threat?
“Anyone choosing to coast on the hard work of taxpayers will lose their benefits” said the Chancellor, as he announced a raft of changes to the social security system. The press release riffs on old and unpleasant themes. Benefit claimants are to be treated with suspicion because they may be “taking …
There’s an election coming…
A UK General Election needs to take place some time before 28 January 2025, with many people predicting either a May or October 2024 poll. As this election year approaches, here are six ways that churches and church leaders can prepare for this significant event in the life of our …