Press Release – Dismay at the Scottish Government’s plans to increase funding for Catholic education.
On June 2nd Nicola Sturgeon revealed plans to multiply by a factor of almost 5 the amount of public money being spent on preparing trainee teachers for the Catholic Teaching Certificate (CTC), a requirement for teaching in Catholic schools but for no other purpose. Although the absolute sums involved are not large, this is public money, raised through taxation levied on a population of which now only one in eight is Catholic, while the majority has no religious affiliation whatsoever. This investment is particularly troubling in the context of the recent report published by the Accounts...
Read MoreOur response to the survey indicating that 70% of young people in the UK do not consider themselves religious
This week saw the publication of figures concerning the religiosity of Europe’s young people. These figures published in a report prepared by Stephen Bullivant for the European Council of [Catholic] Bishops are based on data from the European Social Survey 2014-16 and show that in the UK a majority of the adult population, and 70% of young people (16-29), identify as having no religion. These figures show the privileged place of religion in our system of government to be grossly out of step with the views of the governed. Currently the UK still has 26 bishops sitting and voting in the...
Read MoreThe Scottish Secular Society Welcomes the News That The SNP Governing Body Are Moving to Debate the Repeal of Blasphemy Laws
The Scottish Secular Society welcomes the news that the SNP’s governing body are moving to debate the long overdue repeal of Scotland’s blasphemy laws. We fully support any move to more formally entrench freedom of expression as it is laid out in Article 19 of the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights, and hope this action gains cross party support. We would support Scotland joining England, Wales and many other countries across the world in removing blasphemy laws from the books. We also agree that such action would allow Scotland a more firm moral position when...
Read MoreScottish Declaration on Human Rights
Below is the letter drafted by our human rights adviser John Duncan in response to the unveiling of the Scottish Declaration on Human Rights. In response to this letter we were given information on how to sign up and can now proudly say we are signatories to the Scottish Declaration. You can find information on how to sign up either personally or on behalf of your organisation here: https://humanrightsdeclaration.scot/sign-up Any organisation from the public, private or third sectors can sign their support for the Declaration. Big or small, old or new – as long as your organisation works in...
Read MoreLetter: The Scottish Secular Society responds to Kevin McKenna’s article
Kevin McKenna was correct in arguing that having denominational schools are not a right of religions; he was wrong in arguing that we should seek to establish more faith schools in Scotland to compensate for the over-provision of Catholic schools. Love, compassion and human dignity are not the exclusive preserve of religions and do not require the provision of faith schools for young people to learn them. These are obvious components of an inclusive and civilised society. The Scotland of 2018 is not the Scotland of 1918. Religious affiliation is falling, and is crashing among young people. ...
Read MorePress Release: The SSS welcomes the announcement of a pardon for thousands of gay and bisexual men
The Scottish Secular Society welcomes the announcement yesterday (7th November) by the First Minister of a pardon for thousands of gay and bisexual men who were subject to legal prosecution prior to 1981 and subsequently due to use of outdated laws.
Read MorePress Release: The SSS welcomes Norther Ireland’s referendum on the 8th Amendment
This referendum is the result of a long-fought campaign to repeal the 1983 decision.
Read MorePress Release: Response to Smyllum Park Allegations
Readers of the National will doubtless be aware of the highly disturbing allegations of violence and brutality against children who had been placed in the ‘care’ of nuns at Smyllum Park, Lanark.
Read MorePress Release: Response to the evidence that Scotland is now Majority not religious
The Scottish Secular Society call upon the Scottish Government to recognise the rapid decline of religion in our society and realign our laws to reflect this attitude.
Read MoreWelcoming the CoS move toward a more humanity-based morality.
The Scottish Secular Society welcome the Church of Scotland General Assembly’s approval of an apology to gay people for the past discrimination they have faced in the Church.
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