Parliament must rectify the
“bad laws” restricting the freedom of Christians to live according to
their beliefs, says a Christian barrister.
Paul Diamond represented married Christian couple Owen and Eunice
Johns who made headlines when the High Court upheld Derby City Council's
right to halt their application to be foster carers because they said
they could not promote the homosexual lifestyle.
Mr Diamond has advised the couple not to appeal the decision, saying that it would be “futile”.
“The courts are so set against religious freedom for Christians that an appeal is likely to only make matters worse,” he said.
Instead, he and the Johns are seeking a political intervention to
ensure that Christians can live and work according to their conscience.
A petition is being submitted by campaign group Christian Concern on
their behalf.
It warns that recent equalities legislation and its
interpretation in the courts has led to several Christians being barred
from different areas of public life and employment, contrary to freedom
of conscience.
This, the petition says, is “creating a serious obstacle to the
Christian community’s full and active involvement in the Big Society
initiative”.
“We call on the Prime Minister to act decisively to address this
situation, securing the change necessary to ensure that the law provides
a basis for widespread involvement in service society whilst properly
upholding the dignity of every individual, including those who seek to
live with integrity to Christian conscience and teaching,” it reads.
The group is lobbying MPs and peers in the House of Lords to seek a review of the Equality Act.
Mr Diamond said there was much to be commended in the Equality Act
and the Sexual Orientation Regulations and that sexual orientation or
faith should not be a reason to discriminate against others.
However, he said the laws were “poorly drafted” and “leaving too much to the discretion to the Courts”.
He added that they were being used to “eradicate Judeo Christian morality and usher in secular values”.
Mr Diamond said the "countless" cases where accommodation of
conscience was being denied to Christians amounted to a “liberal
tyranny”.
“In recent years, there has been a combination of bad laws and a
number of poor judicial appointments by the previous Government," he
said.
“Where there are excellent judges they are restricted by bad laws.
“Unfortunately, there are also judges making law based on personal
predilections. Parliament must remedy this situation as a matter of
urgency.”
He continued: “Coerced morality or coerced immorality, depending on one’s perspective, is not the hallmark of a free society.
“In all too many instances, the attempt by Christians to seek justice
in the courts is a barren experience, almost as if a special animosity
is reserved for adherents of this faith.”