Northern Ireland Humanists (NIH), alongside Humanists UK, becomes members of the Coalition against Conversion Therapy (CACT), a coalition of leading psychological, psychotherapeutic, and counselling organisations committed to ending conversion therapy, and who hope to extend the reach of its activities into Northern Ireland.
MPs vote to compel legal same-sex marriage and abortion in Northern Ireland
MPs have voted today in favour of compelling the UK Government to make same-sex marriage legal in Northern Ireland, to decriminalise abortion, and to make provision for legal abortion in the cases of sexual crime and foetal abnormality.
Humanists UK unhappy following review into marriage laws in England and Wales
UK Government announces details of upcoming review into marriage laws in England and Wales, which will see fast-track legal recognition of civil marriages taking place in outdoor venues.
Ireland votes to remove blasphemy from its constitution
Ireland’s vote to remove blasphemy from its constitution is a resounding success for free speech, says Humanists UK. Irish citizens voted resoundingly at a referendum on Saturday, October 27 to remove the clause from the constitution.
Faith groups demand Government’s permission for homophobic teaching in English schools
Humanists UK, the national charity working on behalf of non-religious people, reveal fundamentalist and fringe religious groups attempt to undermine the Government’s plans for relationships and sex education (RSE) in English schools by opposing teaching about same-sex relationships.
Jersey recognises humanist and same-sex marriages
Humanists UK led the campaign for recognition of humanist marriages and supported legal same-sex marriages as well. A tabled amendment to give religious business-owners the right to refuse good and services to same-sex couples was soundly defeated by a majority of States Assembly members.
53% of Britons are non-religious, says latest BSA Survey
The 34th annual British Social Attitudes Survey shows that non-religious people represent a clear majority of British people in 2017. This accounts for 53% of the general population, a new high for the non-religious population, which was previously estimated at 51% in 2014.
Court of Appeal in Belfast “passes buck” on women’s rights
The court of appeal in Belfast rules that reform of abortion law in Northern Ireland should be left to the Northern Ireland Assembly, and not decided by the courts. In 2015 the High Court ruled that Northern Ireland’s restrictive abortion laws violate the rights of women to a private life under European human rights law. The ruling involved women and girls who were denied abortions in Northern Ireland either in cases of fatal foetal abnormality or despite their pregnancies being the result of sexual crimes.
