News Bulletin 31 May 2013

The Bishop of Salisbury, the Rt Revd Nicholas Holtam, has controversially accused supporters of traditional marriage of being equivalent to supporters of apartheid — The Government, with support from Labour, has switched the date of the Same-Sex Marriage vote in the Lords to Tuesday 4th June, following fears the Bill would have been defeated on the first day back after the recess — Speaking at the National Association of Head Teachers annual conference, Amanda Hulme has warned that TV shows such as X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent are causing children to lose their innocence — A primary school has come under fire for encouraging children as young as five to dress as the opposite sex for the day — Christian registrar Lillian Ladele has been denied an appeal for ‘religious discrimination’ by the European Court of Human Rights, in what has been called ‘a sad day for liberty of conscience in Europe’ — A British man suffering from dementia is believed to be the first with the condition to be helped to die at the Dignitas suicide clinic in Switzerland — Ministers at Westminster have been warned not to follow Portugal in liberalising drugs laws because it has led to an increase in their use — And a fun-filled correspondence course is helping children as young as 4 to improve their understanding of the Bible.