British Lawmakers Oppose Catholic Exemption from Adoption Rules

A committee of British lawmakers has recommended against exempting Catholic agencies from a new policy that will require equal treatment of same-sex couples seeking to adopt children.

Prime Minister Tony Blair has already announced that he does not plan to offer the exemption that was requested by Catholic Church leaders, led by Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor of Westminster. Now the parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR) has strongly backed Blair’s stand, saying that any move to accommodate religious principles “should not conflict with the right of gay people not to be discriminated against in their access to important services. "

In fact, the JCHR urged broader efforts to protect homosexuals from what might be considered discriminatory behavior. The report said that even in church-related schools, homosexual students should not be taught that their behaviour is sinful.

Andrew Dismore, the chairman of the JCHR, said that churches should not be require to perform same-sex marriages if such ceremonies would violate their beliefs. However, he said, “any wider exemption, to allow religious bodies to discriminate on the grounds of sexuality when providing goods, facilities, and services, or performing public services, cannot be justified."?

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