Election 24 – Local candidates position on humanist issues

In the run up to the election on July 4th, Humanists UK have been analysing the party’s manifestos for their implications for key humanist campaigns. They have a page on their website where you can find where the parties stand on various issues of particular concern to humanists – https://humanists.uk/ge2024/

We have written to our local candidates, where contact details are available, asking their possition on issues we care about as local humanists. Details are below – we’ll update this page with any responses as they are received

The following email has been sent to:

Moorview – Conservative, Labour, Reform and Libdem candidates (no contact details for Green candidate yet located)

Sutton and Devonport – Conservative, Labour, Libdem, Reform, Green and one independant (Chas Singh)

The email was as follows:

I live in the [Moorview/Sutton and Devonport] constituency and am also an active humanist, helping run the humanist group in Plymouth.

As a humanist I have some specific policy concerns which I would like to hear your views on. I will share these with my fellow humanists to help them reach a decision on how to vote in the upcoming election.

Do you support immediately legally recognising humanist marriages in England and Wales?

Previous Governments have stalled giving legal recognition to humanist marriages, despite being given the power to do so by the Marriage (Same-Sex Couples) Act 2013. 90% of responses to a consultation on the matter supported a change in the law, and non-religious couples in Scotland and Northern Ireland already have the same right to get married in line with their beliefs as religious couples.

Do you support a compassionate assisted dying law for adults who are of sound mind but are terminally ill or incurably suffering?

Polls show that the majority of the British public believe that any adult of sound mind who is intolerably suffering from an incurable, physical condition and has a clear and settled wish to die should have the option of an assisted death.

Do you support changing the law so school assemblies are fully inclusive of all pupils, rather than being acts of ’collective worship’?

The law requires ‘broadly Christian’ daily worship in schools which discriminates against non-Christian pupils, parents, and staff. Inclusive school assemblies would be a more effective way of building shared values, and forwarding the spiritual, moral, social, and cultural development of all pupils.    

Do you support fully inclusive school admissions with no discrimination based on religion?

Prioritising children based on faith in school admissions discriminates against children of the ‘wrong’ or no faith, reduces the access of local parents to local schools, and leads to communities that are divided along lines of religion, race, and family income.

Do you support legislation to close loopholes and enhance government powers to shut down unregistered religious schools?

The education provided in many unregistered religious schools for at least 6,000 children is known to be narrow, predominantly scriptural in its content, deeply intolerant, and extreme while safeguarding risks remain rife.

Do you support removing automatic places for 26 bishops in the House of Lords?

The UK is the only democratic sovereign state that grants legislative seats to religious representatives by right, a discriminatory and undemocratic practice that unjustly privileges one denomination in an increasingly diverse and non-religious society. Any reform of the House of Lords needs to remove this right. 

Do you support a ban on so-call ‘conversion therapy’?

‘Conversion therapy’ is not only discredited but deeply harmful. Rooted in misguided beliefs, it subjects LGBT people, often young and vulnerable, to practices ranging from pseudo-psychological treatments to extreme measures like forced marriage and ‘corrective rape’. Despite previous promises, a ban has yet to be introduced 

Thank you for your time.

Moorview – responses so far

Labour Candidate (Fred Thomas). Fred replied (within 6 hours) as follows:

• Do you support immediately legally recognising humanist marriages in England and Wales? Yes
• Do you support a compassionate assisted dying law for adults who are of sound mind but are terminally ill or incurably suffering? Yes in theory I absolutely do. However I will be very cautious about the wording of any potential legislation I vote on.
• Do you support changing the law so school assemblies are fully inclusive of all pupils, rather than being acts of ’collective worship’? I would like to know more about this, I was not aware. [We will send on further information about this issue]
• Do you support fully inclusive school admissions with no discrimination based on religion? Yes
• Do you support legislation to close loopholes and enhance government powers to shut down unregistered religious schools? Yes
• Do you support removing automatic places for 26 bishops in the House of Lords? Yes
• Do you support a ban on so-call ‘conversation therapy’? Yes

Sutton and Devonport – responses so far

Conservative Candidate (Gareth Streeter). Gareth replied (within an hour!) as follows:

Many thanks for this. To be totally honest, I doubt I’m the candidate for you. I would be open to exploring the first and the last of these, but beyond that I am highly unlikely to support. I believe faith and belief have a huge role to play in public life. Humanism absolutely can be one of those beliefs. But in my experience, humanist groups tend to focus on squeezing out religion rather than making a positive case for humanism. I appreciate that I am highly unlikely to secure your vote as a result for this email. But I would rather disappoint you now rather than try and fudge it and disappoint you later (if that makes sense). Gareth

Liberal Democrats Candidate (Holly Greenberry-Pullen) – referred us to the Liberal Democrat manifesto, as analysed by HUK above.