The British Humanist Association (BHA) has raised concerns over Faith in the Community, a new report published today by Christians in Parliament and the Evangelical Alliance. The report calls on local authorities to allow religious groups to get more involved in providing public services. The BHA is opposed to this policy, because it creates the possibility of discrimination against public service users and employees.
Faith in the Community urges local authority officials to overcome an alleged suspicion towards religious groups who would like to provide public services. The report laments an alleged ‘widespread religious illiteracy in many public institutions’, and complains about ‘an increase in the secularist temperament of formal institutions’ at the national and local levels. The report also rejects as ‘unsubstantiated fears’ the concern that religious groups might use public service contracts to proselytise, to discriminate against certain groups of service users (such as LGBT people), and to provide benefits only for their own communities.
However, the idea that local authorities are suspicious of religious service providers is contradicted by new research conducted by the Church Times, which shows that a fifth of local authorities are spending money allocated to help people in crisis on church groups, in order to fund services such as food banks. The Church Times’ research focuses on how local authorities are planning to spend the Local Welfare Provision (LWP) money allocated to them by the Department for Work and Pensions in 2013-14. The research found that one local authority, Medway Council in Kent, has even transferred its entire LWP budget to a church-based group.
Pavan Dhaliwal, BHA Head of Public Affairs, commented ‘When religious groups take on roles that would previously have been provided by secular organisations, this threatens the secular nature of the welfare state, and raises the possibility of discrimination in public services. This is because the exemptions in the Equality Act 2010 enable religious organisations which provide public services to discriminate on the grounds of religion and belief.’
‘We need secular public services which cater for everyone regardless of their religion or belief, and which treat people equally. But if more faith-based organisations start to take over public services, as advocated in the Faith in the Community report, there is a danger that religious discrimination will start to creep in to the system. Before any public services are outsourced to religious organisations, there must be statutory rules introduced to protect all clients and employees of public services from discrimination.’
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For further comment or information contact Pavan Dhaliwal, Head of Public Affairs at pavan@humanists.uk or on 0773 843 5059.
The Evangelical Alliance – Faith in the Community: http://www.eauk.org/current-affairs/news/faith-in-the-community.cfm
The Church Times – Crisis cash goes to church projects: http://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2013/7-june/news/uk/crisis-cash-goes-to-church-projects
BHA raises concerns over Cameron speech on faith and the ‘Big Society’: http://humanists.uk/2012/11/01/news-1136/
Concerns over new Archbishop’s desire for Church role in welfare services: http://humanists.uk/2013/02/04/concerns-over-new-archbishops-desire-for-church-role-in-welfare-services/
The BHA’s campaign on public service reform: https://humanists.uk/campaigns/public-service-reform
The British Humanist Association is the national charity working on behalf of non-religious people who seek to live ethical and fulfilling lives on the basis of reason and humanity. It promotes a secular state and equal treatment in law and policy of everyone, regardless of religion or belief