EU and church schools
SIR – Peter Seccombe (Letters, January 13) wonders why there has been “silence from opposition parties” about “the Equality Bill being driven through Parliament by Harriet Harman which threatens to make it illegal for Churches to refuse to employ people opposed to the Christian faith in their beliefs and lifestyles”.
A European Union press release last November stated that “the European Commission has today sent a reasoned opinion to the UK for incorrectly implementing EU rules prohibiting discrimination based on religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation in employment and occupation [Directive 2000/78/EC] … The Commission pointed out that exceptions to the principle of non-discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation for religious employers are broader than that permitted by the directive.”
A “reasoned opinion” is a yellow card in EU jargon. The next step is going to court in Luxembourg.
Regardless of the Equality Bill, therefore, Brussels is already in the business of telling Churches (and hence church schools) what to do.
Because all three main political parties assure us that British membership of the European Union is a good thing, you won’t hear much argument from the opposition, especially in an election year.
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