Category Archives: Religion in public debate

New Poll Findings

Posted on June 24, 2012 by Clive D. Field

There have been no substantive polls on religion in Britain during recent weeks, but here are a few findings from disparate surveys which BRIN has yet to report and which some of our readers may have missed: Religious affiliation 56% … Continue reading →

Posted in Attitudes towards Religion, News from religious organisations, Religion and Politics, Religion in public debate, Survey news | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

LGBT Opinion on Same-Sex Marriage

Posted on June 12, 2012 by Clive D. Field

The Government’s public consultation on ‘equal civil marriage’, which closes this Thursday (14 June 2012), continues to excite controversy. According to today’s The Times, there have already been more than 100,000 formal responses. Much of the opposition to these proposals … Continue reading →

Posted in News from religious organisations, Religion and Politics, Religion in public debate, Survey news | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

What Anglicans (and others) think about homosexuality and disestablishment

Posted on June 12, 2012 by Siobhan McAndrew

Earlier today, the Church of England responded to the Government’s proposals to introduce same-sex marriage. In view of the discussion generated by the response, it is worth examining what Anglicans themselves think about gay relationships. BRIN correspondent Ben Clements, based at the University of Leicester, has recently looked at data from the British Social Attitudes surveys and the European Values Surveys to see how attitudes to homosexual relationship have changed over the past three decades or so. Continue reading →

Posted in Religion in public debate, Survey news | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Children and Pornography

Posted on April 23, 2012 by Clive D. Field

Today’s Daily Mail reports that the Government may be back-tracking, on civil liberties grounds, on its commitments to introduce tough measures to protect children from access to online pornography, which would entail explicit requirements to opt into adult content. However, … Continue reading →

Posted in Religion in public debate, Survey news | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Channel 4 Britishness Poll

Posted on March 25, 2012 by Clive D. Field

Although, as reported by BRIN on 18 February 2012, 56% of adults think that Britain is a Christian country and 61% that it should be, only 4% (and no more than 8% in any demographic sub-group, the peak being among over-65s) consider that not being a Christian stops people from being fully British. Continue reading →

Posted in Religion in public debate, Survey news | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Sunday Trading and the Olympics

Posted on March 21, 2012 by Clive D. Field

Chancellor George Osborne is expected to use his budget speech today formally to announce Government plans to introduce emergency legislation to suspend the Sunday Trading Act 1994 for eight weeks from 22 July 2012, during the period around the Olympic and Paralympic Games, in a move designed to signal to the world that Britain is ‘open for business’. Sunday shopping hours would thus be deregulated in England and Wales, permitting large shops to open for more than six hours on Sundays for the first time. No public consultation on the matter is mooted. Although the relaxation would be temporary, the Treasury has indicated that it will regard the suspension as an experiment, quantifying the economic effects of deregulation. Continue reading →

Posted in Religion and Politics, Religion in public debate, Survey news | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Honour Crimes

Posted on March 19, 2012 by Clive D. Field

Almost two-thirds (69%) of young British Asians aged 16-34 consider that families should live according to the concept of ‘honour’ or ‘izzat’. The proportion is lowest among Asian Christians (62%) and Hindus (64%) and greatest for Muslims (70%) and Sikhs (79%). This is one of the findings of a ComRes poll undertaken on behalf of the BBC as background for a Panorama special on ‘Britain’s Crimes of Honour’, being broadcast tonight (BBC One, 8.30 pm). Continue reading →

Posted in Religion and Ethnicity, Religion in public debate, Survey news | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Gay Marriage and the Church

Posted on March 11, 2012 by Clive D. Field

The debate about gay marriage has become more charged during recent weeks, as the Government’s plans for its legalization in England and Wales approach the public consultation stage. In particular, there has been heavyweight opposition to same-sex (gay) marriage from … Continue reading →

Posted in Religion and Politics, Religion in public debate, Religion in the Press, Survey news | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Religious Education in Schools

Posted on March 10, 2012 by Clive D. Field

Fewer than one in seven Britons believe that religious education (RE) should not be taught at all in schools, and the proportion does not rise beyond 24% even for those who do not belong to a religion or 28% among … Continue reading →

Posted in Religion in public debate, Survey news | Tagged , , | Leave a comment