Nick Hallett - Page 26

The Archbishop of Sydney has criticised attempts to “bully” people into accepting the “deconstruction and redefinition” of marriage, accusing supporters of gay marriage of promoting a “homogenizing ‘equality’”. Addressing the congregation at his diocese’s annual Marriage Mass, Archbishop Anthony Fisher

Something has gone badly wrong with British multiculturalism. Instead of people with different cultures and beliefs living side-by-side in peace and harmony as was promised, we have huge divisions, neighbourhoods that have effectively become ghettoes and an increasing number of

A Muslim Civil Guard officer has asked Spanish authorities to fund his pilgrimage to Mecca, since colleagues have received funding for Christian holy trips. The officer, based in Melilla, one Spain’s two exclaves on the North African coast, wrote to

England’s state church has backed a motion calling for new vicars to be trained in “ecotheology” and “eco-justice” alongside more traditional Christian ethics. In a motion debated at a meeting of the General Synod in York, Church of England leaders

Britain could face a bill of up to £850m for latest Greek bailout as European leaders desperately search for money for the heavily indebted nation. Although Britain is signed up to an emergency EU fund, Prime Minister David Cameron believes

An equal rights campaigner has branded a flag designed by a 12-year-old girl as racist because it features a chain that could have been used in the slave trade. Patrick Vernon says the Black Country flag, which is coloured red,

London is the abortion capital of England, with over 30 per cent of all pregnancies in three of the city’s boroughs ending in termination, new figures reveal. Lambeth, Southwark and Islington have the highest abortion rates in the country, with

Pro-hunting MPs have vowed to drop their campaign to scrap the Hunting Act if parliament votes to relax the controversial law later this week. Under the proposed amendments, farmers will be able to use a full pack of hounds to

A case of H7N7 bird flu has been confirmed at a farm in Lancashire, northern England. Authorities have set up a six-mile surveillance zone and three-mile “protection zone” to stop the disease from spreading. Sky News says H7N7 can spread

Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandr Vucic has been chased from a Srebrenica memorial ceremony by an angry crowd throwing stones and bottles. The incident happened as thousands of people gathered in the Bosnian town to remember the 1995 massacre of 8,000

A Scottish newspaper is embroiled in a freedom of speech row after sacking two columnists over comments on Islam. The West Highland Free Press dismissed Donald Macleod, a professor of theology in the Free Church of Scotland, after he wrote

The Greek parliament last night backed a series of punishing tax rises and spending cuts in last ditch attempt to reach a deal for a new bailout. The country has requested a financial lifeline of €53.5bn to prop up its

A government bureaucrat has boldly gone where no civil servant has gone before by replying to an official question in Klingon. A Conservative politician submitted a request to the Labour-run Welsh Government asking about UFO sightings over Cardiff Airport, only

Two commercial airline pilots have fallen under the influence of IS after being radicalised online, Australian anti-terror police warn. The men, both Malaysian, are named in a leaked report as Tommy Abu Alfatih and Ridwan Agustin. The Times reports that

Only God Himself knows what was going through the head of Bolivian president Evo Morales when he thought it would be a good idea to give Pope Francis a “Hammer and Sickle Crucifix“. Although, according to reports, the Pope diplomatically

As the Greek crisis deepens, questions are already being asked about whether another Eurozone member could end up in the same situation. With huge public debt, a vulnerable economy and the prospect of a radical left-wing government on the horizon

News that the government will next week attempt to relax the controversial hunting ban has been welcomed by countryside campaigners in Britain. MPs will get a free vote on whether to scrap a restriction that says only two dog may

More than 100 MPs from German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s own party are set to rebel against any new bailout deal for Greece – potentially sealing the country’s fate in the Eurozone. According to German media, the rebellion could kill of

The Church of England has become the first major Christian denomination in Britain to speak out against George Osborne’s plans to relax Sunday trading laws – legislation that prevents shops from opening longer than six hours on Sundays – saying

A group of Evangelical Christians have created a “sin free” social network that filters out swearing and erotic content. Faceglória has attracted 100,000 members since it was launched last month and its creators have big plans for the future. Based

Global bank HSBC has fired six of its British staff after they filmed themselves staging a mock Islamic State beheading during a team building day at a go kart centre. Footage obtained by The Sun shows five men dressed in

European creditors have warned Greece that it can expect no further help and that it will crash out of the euro unless it accepts the bailout deal. The Times reports that Germany said the only aid it will now offer

As Europe plunges further into chaos following Greece’s decisive “No” vote on Sunday, the eyes of the world are on the Syriza-led Greek government. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and the now departed Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis are deservedly in the

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has nominated the successor to outspoken Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis who announced his surprise resignation earlier today. Euclid Tsakalotos has been up to now Greece’s “Alternative Foreign Minister” focussing on purely economic affairs. As Varoufakis

As Europe wakes to the momentous result in Greece, some of the continent’s papers are predicting a near apocalypse over the ‘No’ result. The German papers are relatively muted, although not exactly pleased, about the result. Die Welt says “Greece

In a further sign its days in the euro may be numbered, the Greek government is considering introducing an “IOU currency” to boost liquidity while banks remain closed. In the wake of last night’s decisive “No” vote, top Syriza officials

Many in Greece and across Europe are coming to terms with the reality that the debt-ridden country may soon have to leave the euro. With Greeks due to go to the polls tomorrow to decide whether to accept the terms

Greece is on the brink of ruin as food and medicine run short and banks struggle to stay afloat. Banks claimed they had €1bn of cash left to see them through the weekend, just €90 per head, and need immediate

A Muslim barrister has been filmed telling a women’s workshop that the government is lying about the threat posed by Islamic State. Ibtihal Bsis, a presenter on the London-based Islam TV channel and member of the radical Hizb ut-Tahrir group,

A self-styled ‘queer and trans group’ stands accused of censorship and racism after white gay and Jewish students were booted out of the “No HeterOx” organising page which blasts the “monotony of cisheterosexism”. According to Cherwell, the No HeterOx Facebook group

The Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has criticised America’s Episcopal Church for inventing a religious ceremony for gay marriages and referring to God in gender-neutral terms. Welby, who serves as symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, of which

Support for Spain’s radical leftist Podemos party is falling as the crisis in Greece deepens, latest polls suggest. Since it was founded last year, the party – whose name translates as “We Can” – has generated a huge amount of

A hospital in Manchester, UK has dropped a proposal to close a Catholic chapel and turn it into a prayer room for Muslims after thousands signed a petition against the move. Breitbart London reported on Monday that the petition had

Britain must completely ban parents from smacking their children, a report submitted to the UN has demanded. The UK’s four children’s commissioners call for the “immediate” repeal of all laws permitting parents to physically chastise their children and tell the

The UK’s revenue from oil and gas has plummeted by 54 per cent in the space of a year from £4.7bn in 2013-14 to just £2.1bn in 2014-15 as world oil prices continue to drop. The fall is more than

A crowd of assorted far-left activists gathered in London’s Trafalgar Square last night to rally in “solidarity” with the Greek government. Speaking at the rally were many of the usual suspects including Labour leadership contender Jeremy Corbyn, Green MP Caroline