The last remaining Catholic adoption agency in the UK is being forced to close after a ruling that it could no longer specially favour married couples as adoptive parents. The Charity Commission, the UK’s charity watchdog, ruled that Catholic Care, based in the diocese of Leeds, was ‘discriminating’ against same-sex couples as potential adoptive parents....
A London council is carrying out an investigation into two registrars after they allegedly refused to conduct same-sex partnership ceremonies because they went against their religious beliefs, according to a report in the Daily Telegraph. The two registrars swapped their shifts at a register office informally to avoid the civil unions, it has been claimed....
One of the country’s main marriage registrars has warned that up to one in six civil marriage ceremonies may be “sham marriages” conducted with the sole aim of subverting immigration laws. Dennis Prior, superintendent registrar for the Health Service Executive eastern registration area, told the Irish Times that the figure may be between 10 and...
Men who have happy childhood memories of their father cope better with the day-to-day stresses of life, a new study shows. Prof Melanie Mallers, who led the research project, said: “The message is that father-son relationships are incredibly powerful. When they’re healthy, it’s hugely protective for boys.” She added: “Most studies on parenting focus on...
The Minister of State for Equality, Mary White has promised to help fathers who are being denied access to their children by their former partners. She said there was an opportunity to tackle the issue of single fathers’ rights, adding that it was “heart-breaking” meeting these fathers who were unable to see their children, according...
Parental choice must be central in the provision of primary schools, according to Father Michael Drumm, the chairperson of the Catholic Schools Partnership (CSP). And he went on to point out that there is little parental demand for a secular education agenda. Speaking to rhe Irish Catholic, Fr Drumm said that the Church “will only...
The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) has attacked the Iona Institute over its attitude to the Civil Partnership Act. In the editorial page of its quarterly newsletter, Rights News, ICCL director Mark Kelly (pictured) attacked The Iona Institute’s claim that marriage as a social institution is bound up with a child’s right to a...
A leading child-care expert has disputed the findings of a new study which claims that children are not harmed when they are placed in crèches as small babies. The study, entitled “First-Year Maternal Employment and Child Development in the First 7 Years”, purported to show that, because women who returned to work early tended to...
The Catholic Church has expressed its desire to be considered as a patron for new schools in growing areas, pointing out that demand still exists for such schools. In confidential documents sent to the Department of Education, and leaked to the Irish Independent, the Bishops, together with the Catholic Primary School Management Association (CPSMA), point...
The European Union is funding a conference hosted in Dublin by a leading gay rights group to promote the legalisation of same-sex adoption.It is also receiving funding from the Dutch Government, the British Council and the Equality Authority. One of the EU’s funding branches, the European Union Progress Fund, also known as PROGRESS, is supporting...
