Society & Politics

• UK’s Foreign Aid Budget to be reduced. There has been a mixed reaction to the Government’s announcement that it will reduce its foreign aid budget from 0.7 per cent to 0.5 per cent in 2021. The Archbishop of Canterbury called the move “shameful”; numerous former Prime Ministers (Cameron, Major, Blair, Brown) have opposed the plans; and Baroness Liz Sugg has resigned from her position as Minister for Overseas Territories and Sustainable Development as a result of the decision. Read more here. But many other leaders approve of the reduction in foreign aid, some even stating that politicians who applauded a second lockdown, massive governmental bailouts, and the increase of national debt to unprecedented levels, are indirectly responsible.
  
• Britain’s foreign aid spending has long been controversial. Around a third of the UK’s aid budget in 2016 was spent via multilateral organisations such as the UN. A study by three economists published in February found that billions of pounds of aid allocated to the most in-need nations ended up in tax havens. One national newspaper reported earlier this year that a mosque in Egypt has been rebuilt using British aid as “millions of pounds are lavished on arts and culture projects abroad”. The paper added that “Britain has also increased aid spending in China and India – even as both plan to send missions to the Moon”. Read more here.
• Perplexing Covid statistics as 99% of England faces tough new curbs. A report conducted by The Daily Mail has revealed some very surprising statistics in regard to the second wave of coronoavirus the nation is currently experiencing. Among these are that many of the Government’s own grim predictions haven’t been remotely realised; that last week, only 13 per cent of NHS beds and 31 per cent of Intensive Care Unit beds – not including those which have been recently converted from normal beds, or the redundant Nightingale wards – were occupied by patients with Covid. Further, we are informed that there have been just 275 deaths in people under 40 throughout the entire second wave, only 42 of which had no pre-existing conditions (nearly all of which were serious). Perhaps most astonishing of all is the claim that in general, “deaths are not far above average for this time of year” and that this is true even of elderly people. Read more here.
• Doubts cast over AstraZeneca vaccine. Meanwhile, it has emerged that in the test group in which the jab was most effective, AstraZeneca, one of the companies that has produced a high-success rate vaccine, only carried out tests on people aged 55 and under, completely excluding the age-group most at risk from Covid. Further concerns have been raised at the unusually low number of people tested. As a consequence of this, the company intends to run an additional global trial to assess the efficacy of vaccine, which could significantly delay its production. Read more here.
• Outrage at ITV soap storyline about Downs abortion. The Down Syndrome Association have joined others in their concern over the Emmerdale storyline portraying a couple who choose to abort their baby after a diagnosis of Down Syndrome. They say they were not consulted. Others who have spoken out include actress Sally Phillips and campaigner Heidi Crowder. A petition asking Emmerdale to bin the storyline has now over 27,000 signatures. Many feel that this perpetuates the line that people with Down Syndrome do not have a good quality of life, or are not deserving of life.

Church Issues

• Arrest of human rights campaigner, Wilfred Wong. It was reported in the media that Wilfred Wong – international human rights activist, campaigner and fundraiser for persecuted Christians and also on children's issues – along with five other people, were arrested after they had ‘kidnapped’ an eight year-old boy, apparently ‘at knife point’, on November 4th on Anglesey, North Wales. According to the newspapers, the arrest had involved a dramatic 250-mile pursuit across Britain, all the way to Milton Keynes, before police caught up with them. Further details regarding this story are as yet unknown.
• ‘Underground’ church services – in the UK! With church services in the UK greatly restricted or even banned, a number of Christian groups have been holding clandestine meetings across the country. In scenes that call to mind strict anti-Christian measures in China or Iran, police recently intervened at an evangelical church in Clerkenwell, north London, after its pastor publicly announced his intention to hold a service. Meanwhile, in Gedling, Nottinghamshire, two arrests were made at a Christian bookshop and cafe after a gathering of up to 50 people. Read more here
• UK religious freedom constraints among worst in Europe. A study conducted by The European Centre for Law and Justice states that churches in the United Kingdom have suffered some of the most stringent and discriminatory constraints in Europe as a result of Covid-19. According to the study “respect for religious freedom and public health” had been maintained in most European countries. However, the Republic of Ireland, France, Belgium and the United Kingdom were all found to have consistently “prohibited public religious services” during times of lockdown. Read more here
• Church leaders launch legal challenge against English and Welsh public worship bans. The above-noted study appears as more than 100 church leaders have launched a legal challenge against the English and Welsh governments for banning public worship during their second lockdowns. Legal action is also being launched against Welsh First Minister Mark Drakeford's government who imposed a similar ban during Wales' 17-day firebreak which ended earlier this month. Read more here.

Israel & Middle East

• Netanyahu holds secret meeting with Saudi crown prince. It has emerged that Israeli leader, Benjamin Netanyahu, made an unannounced trip to Saudi Arabia last weekend to meet the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, and the US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, according to an Israeli cabinet member and others. Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister denied the two had spoken, and even Israel’s prime minister’s office refused to confirm the story. The meeting was seen as part of ongoing efforts to build relations between the two nations, which have formerly been long-term foes. Read more here.
• Nobel Peace Prize nomination. Meanwhile, David Trimble, the only living British Nobel Peace Prize winner and the former first minister of Northern Ireland, has nominated Netanyahu, along with the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Mohammed bin Zayed, for next year’s Nobel Peace prize. Lord Trimble drew comparisons between the Good Friday agreement and the UAE/Israel accords. Read more here.

Upcoming Events

• Patria prayer webinar. A webinar to commemorate the sinking of the ‘Patria’, with over 200 Jewish refugees on board, as well as 50 British men, will take place this Sunday, November 29th at 2.30pm.