Secularism
From SecularPortal
Secularism is the political belief that religion and the state must remain separate. This term should not be confused with secularity.
Secularism in the UK
The UK has a high degree of secularity but unfortunately falls behind other countries in Europe in terms of the separation of religion and the state. France excludes religion from all facets of public life (including the school system) and while the French system does not necessarily represent a model for the UK, it does not confer privileges on religious organisations or beliefs.
Many groups - including the British Humanist Association and National Secular Society - are campaigning for greater secularism in the United Kingdom, as religion and the state are closely intertwined.
- The Church of England is officially the state religion
- A number of Church of England bishops are granted the automatic right to sit in Parliament (The Lords Spiritual)
- Each day in Parliament begins with prayers
- The government continues to fund faith schools with public money
- A daily act of worship is still mandatory in UK schools
- Considerable time is given on the publicly-funded BBC to religious thought and religious programmes without equal representation of the non-religious
- Public services are often contracted out to religious organisations, who are free to discriminate in the provision of these services according to their beliefs
- Religious Education in schools continues to exclude non-religious viewpoints from the syllabus and in many schools is taught with a strong bias towards Christianity.
