Childhood: playground or battleground?
On Sunday 14 May, in celebration of National Children’s Day UK, events and activities will take place nationwide to highlight the importance of a “healthy childhood” and to “protect the rights and freedoms of children and young people”.
The Christian Institute recognises that children are a heritage from the Lord (Psalm 127:3), and has long campaigned on issues that undermine family life and make it harder for children to flourish.
Abortion, quickie divorce, inappropriate sex education, damaging online porn, gambling addiction, abuse of trust, and radical gender ideology are all battles the Institute has fought, and shall continue to fight.
Abortion shame
Children are at their most vulnerable in the womb. On 27 April 1968, the Abortion Act came into force in Great Britain – six months after being passed by Parliament. For 55 years, it has been legal in England, Wales and Scotland to kill an unborn child in the womb, and it has been legal to do so in Northern Ireland since 2020.
In total, there have now been over ten million recorded abortions in Great Britain since the 1967 Act was passed, about 98 per cent of them for social reasons. Around one in five pregnancies in Britain now ends in abortion.
The CI frequently shares good news stories of mums and dads who choose life for their unborn child, a choice often made against the advice of their doctors. Many of these parents are not Christians, but through their actions they bear witness to God’s common grace.
Graphic sex ed
Pupils across the UK continue to be exposed to age-inappropriate and extreme sex education.
Safeguards against inappropriate content, including the right to withdraw a child, have been removed in Wales, and Scottish schools face pressure from the Government and local authorities to use resources that present an array of sexual acts to pupils.
In England, a report commissioned by MP Miriam Cates highlighted that Relationships and Sex Education has been hijacked by “actors with a radical ideological position on sex, gender and sexuality” putting children at risk.
Mrs Cates recently persuaded Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to commission an independent review into sex education. Speaking to the CI, she called her successful campaign “an example of how democracy can work from the grass roots up and of how, if you can get MPs’ attention, you can get a collaborative effort and bring things to the attention of those in power”. A timely reminder of the significant impact that Institute supporters can have, and have had, on important issues affecting the nation.
Mind-corrupting porn
One in ten children has watched online pornography by the time they reach nine years old, a new report from England’s Children’s Commissioner’s Office revealed earlier this year.
The report found that the average age a child first sees pornography is 13, with half of those surveyed admitting they had watched it by that age.
Lord Bethell is among a number of senior Peers seeking to amend the Government’s Online Safety Bill in order to force pornography websites to start verifying the age of users within six months of the legislation becoming law.
The CI has encouraged supporters to pray for a version of the Online Safety Bill that will properly protect young people from online pornography activity, and we continue to work with Parliamentarians to improve protections for children from pornography and other damaging online content.
The dangerous deception of trans ideology
Transgender ideology claims that each person has a ‘gender identity’ (an internal sense of gender) which may or may not align with their biological sex. The ‘real you’ is what you feel it to be on the inside.
The impact of this radical belief on young people is particularly concerning. In 2021/22, 3,585 children were referred to the NHS’s Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS) – a more than 4,500% increase since 2009/10.
But the clinic is finally being held to account for wrecking the lives of young people. It was slated in an independent investigation which found it was not fit for purpose, and a law firm has launched a class action against it over accusations doctors were prescribing experimental drugs to children who could not understand the implications. We welcome the announcement that GIDS is to close.
Divorce, gambling, abuse
The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 came into effect on 6 April 2022. Under the new law, couples can divorce in six months without having to give a reason and a spouse cannot contest the decision. In October, divorce applications reached the highest number in a decade.
The CI consistently argued that changing the law would make divorces more likely and pointed to evidence that children are adversely affected by divorce. Research in 2017 showed that children whose parents divorced are still suffering from the damaging effects into their 50s.
In June 2022, the CI welcomed a strengthening of abuse of trust legislation. It is now against the law in England and Wales for sports coaches and religious leaders to engage in sexual activity with 16 and 17-year-olds in their care.
Following the publication of the Government’s long-awaited gambling review last month, the Institute countered that the Government was guilty of further delaying much needed action to protect children and other vulnerable people.
Despite the enormity of the challenge to keep our children from harm, we give thanks to God for the progress made and the safeguards implemented. And we shall endeavour, under God, to continue to work towards creating a society in which every child can truly flourish.