The Labour Humanist

Labour Party Conference - on the fringe

If you are attending this year's party conference in Bournemouth do make sure you support the fringe meeting and reception to celebrate the first conference since the establishment of the Labour Humanist Group.

The reception will feature the humanist philosopher, AC Grayling. A Distinguished Supporter of the British Humanist Association, an Honorary Associate of the National Secular Society, and author of (amongst many others) "What Is Good?: The Search for the Best Way to Live"  and "Against All Gods: Six Polemics on Religion and an Essay on Kindness". His latest book, "Towards the Light: The Story of the Struggles for Liberty and Rights That Made the Modern West" is published this September. He is a lively and engaging proponent of humanist values in the modern world, and a speaker always worth hearing.

The reception is being held jointly with the British Humanist Association.

Monday, September 24, 2007
7.30 – 10.00pm
Carrington House Hotel
Knyveton Road
Bournemouth
BH1 3QQ

Labour Deputy Leadership candidates take part in Humanist survey

Labour's six candidates for the post of deputy leader of the Party have all taken part in a survey of their views on issues such as faith control of schools and welfare, House of Lords reform and assisted dying. Their responses are on the web site of the Labour Humanist Group.

Lord Harrison says it's time to rusticate the bishops in the Lords

Labour peer Lord Harrison has written a new comment piece for the web site of the Labour Humanist Group on why he would "rusticate" bishops in the House of Lords.

It's worth a read, I was particularly struck by Lord Harrison's account of how the Bishops apparently always assume when they rise to speak that they will be selected ahead of any other peer, and always refuse to back down:

"...it is a regular occurrence in Lords debates for the good prelates to out-face and out-stare others who wish to speak by remaining standing until any unfortunate Lords wishing to contribute is cowered into sitting down by the chorus from the supporters of the clerics to hear the Bishops first and foremost!"

I was about say "first among equals" but clearly that's not how the bishops see themselves!

Labour Humanists are go!

Excellent stuff! Yesterday in a pleasingly full Committee Room 2 in the House of Lords the Labour Humanist Group held its first public meeting.

There was a more than healthy turnout from both grassroots and PLP members (not to mention a phalanx of Young Fabians) to hear Polly Toynbee made a very good call to arms in her speech. Labour Peers Baroness Whitaker, Baroness Massey and Lord Harrison all spoke in support of the need for a Humanist orientated socialist society within the party, as did MPs Ken Purchase and Andrew Slaughter - and over the next week I'll post more details on some of the issues raised by the parliamentarians.

Malcolm Wicks also came along- how very fitting to see the science minister in a Labour administration present at the launch of a Labour Party Humanist Group. 

Malcolm made a thought provoking contribution that regretted the current need to refight old battles we thought we had won as far back as the 1960s on social freedoms and rights. But Malcolm wondered whether it was simply enough to advance secular politics for him, and others, to be atheistic in their outlook and if we really needed a formal group to make the case. Some high quality debate followed these comments, but a recurring theme was the danger that a new political environment might enable a profound transfer of power and resources into the hands of socially conservative faith groups, that our party's leaders appeared hopelessly weak in the face of churches' lobbying, who after all are minority groups in our broadly secular society, and that there were signs that progressive politicians felt pressure to hide their non-religious beliefs (including one anecdote on rumours of some atheist PLP members joining the Christian Socialists in the hope Tony Blair might look upon them in a more favourable light!!!).  A secular humanist outlook is representative of the values and outlook of a very large section of mainstream opinion with Labour's support and there was a feeling we simply had to be more visible.

Anyway, my hunch is that malcolm will join sooner rather than later  :-)

It was also good to meet some other Labour bloggers at the event and congrats to Baggage Reclaim and Rachelapp for getting their reviews of the meeting published long before mine!

Labour Humanist group launches this week

There's already considerable interest in the launch of the new Labour Humanist Group, but in case anyone has missed it, the group has its launch meeting this Wednesday evening. The details:

Why Labour Needs Humanism

January 31 2007
7pm
Committee Room 2
House of Lords
(enter at St Stephen's entrance - arrive early to avoid queues!)

Speakers include Polly Toynbee

The aim of the Labour Humanist Group is to spread awareness of humanism and humanists within the Labour Party and to promote humanist and Labour values.  The Group is committed to:

• Fostering a commitment to equality and universal human rights, including the freedom of religion and belief for all people;
• Promoting a rational approach to bioethical, medical and scientific issues as the best guarantee of human progress;
• Defending and advancing secular government and an open society as the best model of a society where all can be included;
• Advocating an inclusive and accommodating education system which can meet the needs of children and parents of different religions and beliefs in a framework common to all, and opposing faith schools and academies;
• Defending the secular nature of our public services