5 Church of England admonish Against Gay wedlock

The Church of England warned a potential change in British law that would allow same sex civil marriages would strike a wedge between church and state of almost biblical proportions, certainly the biggest since its inception some 500 years ago.

The Church of England bishops delivered a submission to the government warning against pressing ahead with its controversial proposals of legally allowing same sex couples form civil marriage. The church believes that introducing same sex marriage would lead to the church being forced out of its role of conducting weddings on behalf of the state. In the 13-page submission, the Church claim ’Such a move would alter the intrinsic nature of marriage as a union of a man and a woman, as enshrined in human institutions throughout history.’ The document also includes, ’Marriage benefits society in many ways, not only by promoting mutuality and fidelity, but also by acknowledging an underlying biological complimentarily which for many includes the possibility of procreation.’

The UK Government defended the plans to effectively change the status of civil marriage ceremonies to allow gay and lesbian couples in England and Wales to marry. On Tuesday afternoon they advised their confidence in certain safeguards which would prevent certain religious organisations being forced to take part or officiate at same sex marriages. They also confirmed they were fully behind the change of law, vowing to put a vote to parliament and the law be changed before the end of 2015.

The deeply homophobic rooted Coalition for Marriage, that seeks to deny equal rights for gay and lesbian people, handed in a petition to the Government with over 500,000 signatures (the majority electronic) opposing same sex marriage.

A recent poll conducted by YouGov for Stonewall found that between 80 and 85 percent of the population under 50 years of age supported marriage equality, thus allowing same sex couples to marry.

“The Church of England has been loosing its place in a modern society over recent, thanks in part to their stand against equality, against women and now against gays.” A leading gay writer told me today, adding, “They are running the risk of completely detaching themselves from the bulk of British society with this sudden melodramatic outburst and blatant attempt to hijack the truth and foster an sense of false fear. All over the country they are alienating themselves from the vast majority of the population that see themselves as Christians, yet rarely go to church. If they carry on in this fashion, it wont be long before the Church of England will be an obsolete historical institution.”

Thanks: http://technorati.com/politics/article/church-of-england-warn-against-gay/#ixzz1xk94sgFu

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0 Obama walks fine line in bashing Romney, courting Wall Street

For President Barack Obama’s re-election team, it’s sort of like threading a needle. While trying to define Republican Mitt Romney as an insensitive job-killer during his time as a private equity executive, the Obama campaign also is raising money from private equity executives on Wall Street – and hoping voters don’t see that as hypocritical.

The Obama campaign’s political dexterity was evident on Monday, as it released a blistering video ad recounting how Romney’s Bain Capital laid off 750 workers from a steel mill in Missouri. Hours later, the campaign raked in about US$2 million at a Manhattan fundraiser held by Tony James, president of the Blackstone Group, a huge private equity firm.

The Blackstone Group had been on the Obama campaign’s radar before – as a target for criticism. Last month, the campaign identified a Blackstone partner, Paul Schorr, as one of “eight wealthy individuals” who donated to Romney’s campaign after “betting against America” in “less-than-reputable” deals that led to outsourcing and layoffs.

So yesterday at the White House, Obama spokesman Jay Carney faced several questions about whether the president’s campaign was setting a double standard in dealing with Wall Street, where some executives see Obama as anti-business.

Carney rejected the notion that Obama’s team, in criticising Romney and Republican donors in private equity, had been critical only of executives who had not contributed to Obama’s campaign and that only those who support the president were “totally kosher,” in the words of ABC’s Jake Tapper.

Carney said that Obama’s campaign was being critical of individuals, not an industry.

“There is absolutely a place for a vibrant and successful financial sector … that includes private equity,” Carney said.

Not ‘against private equity’

Carney’s words were echoed by Bill Burton, who heads Priorities USA Action, a pro-Obama “Super PAC” that is spending US$4 million to put out its own version of the anti-Romney ad released by Obama’s campaign.

“The president isn’t running against the private equity industry, he is running against Mitt Romney,” Burton said. “Our ads ask whether the decisions Mitt Romney made creating incredible wealth for himself and his partners would make him a good president of the United States.”

Not surprisingly, conservatives do not see it that way.

The Wall Street Journal published an editorial yesterday that chided Obama for attacking Romney’s private equity work and then fundraising on Wall Street the same day.

The newspaper, an influential voice in conservative politics, said that those at the fundraiser, “many from the private equity world, paid US$35,800 a head for the privilege of dining with the president who purports to loathe Wall Street when he isn’t asking its greedy denizens to redistribute their wealth to his campaign.”

First impressions

Analysts said the attacks by Obama’s campaign – and the counter-punching by Romney’s team, which released a video ad showing workers from another Bain-owned steel plant praising Romney – were not surprising.

Although the election is more than five months away, the analysts said, this is a critical time in the campaign – especially for Romney.

Voters who were not focused on the Republican primaries may now be getting their first long look at Romney. So both campaigns are eager to create a lasting first impression of the Republican challenger to Obama.

“Some voters are just taking a first look at Romney, so the Obama campaign wants to shape the narrative,” said Greg Valliere of Potomac Research group, which tracks political developments for investors. “Negative ads work. Romney should know, since he eviscerated (Republican rivals) Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum with withering attack ads in the primaries.”

Valliere questions whether accusations that Obama is being hypocritical toward the private equity industry were unlikely to gain much traction with voters, who he said already are deeply distrustful of politics – and politicians.

“I think the irony is lost on the public,” Valliere said. “Besides, he’s a politician – what would you expect?”

Romney’s campaign, which wants to focus the conversation on Obama’s handling of the sluggish economy, said the president is trying to distract voters from his own record.

In a speech in Iowa yesterday, Romney blasted Obama as an overspending, “old-school liberal” whose economic policies are damaging the country and delaying critical decisions about government spending and debt.

“What President Obama is doing is not bold,” Romney said. “It’s old.”

There were new signs yesterday of the challenge Obama could face at a time when the nation’s unemployment rate is hovering at just above 8% and the economy is growing, but growing slowly.

A new USA Today/Gallup poll found that 55% of Americans expect the economy to get better during the next four years if Romney wins the election, while only 46% said it would improve if Obama is re-elected.

And 27% expect the economy to get worse under a President Romney, compared with 37% who expect things would become more sour if Obama wins a second term

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0 PM's former aide takes stand at UK ethics inquiry

A former tabloid editor who became Prime Minister David Cameron's spin doctor told Britain's media ethics inquiry Thursday that Rupert Murdoch was a hands-off owner who did not meddle in his newspapers' editorial decisions or political positions.

Andy Coulson -- who edited the tabloid News of the World when allegations first became public that it was involved in illegal phone-hacking -- was answering questions at a judge-led inquiry that has turned its attention to the sometimes too-cozy relationship between Britain's press and politicians.

Coulson's appearance has revived questions about Cameron's decision to hire the former tabloid editor.

British politicians of all parties for years have sought the support of newspapers -- especially Murdoch's best-selling tabloids, whose backing was credited with the power to swing elections. As the hacking scandal has unfolded, unease has grown about what favors the newspapers may have received in return.

Coulson said Murdoch had never told him what party the News of the World should support while he was the paper's editor between 2003 and 2007. He said the media mogul was a "warm and supportive" boss, but was in only irregular contact.

When he did call, "we discussed politics generally and he would give me his view on whatever was in the news at the time" -- without Murdoch interfering with the paper's editorial line, Coulson said.

Coulson said he did not discuss with Murdoch which party the newspaper should support in the 2005 national election.

"I followed my own path with it," said Coulson, opting to back Tony Blair's Labour Party, which won.

Coulson has insisted he did not know that News of the World employees were hacking voicemail messages of celebrities, politicians and crime victims in a quest for scoops and circulation.

He left the paper in 2007 after a reporter and a private investigator were jailed for hacking, and became Cameron's powerful media chief later the same year, helping return the Conservatives to power at the May 2010 national election. He quit 10 Downing St. in January 2011 as the hacking scandal intensified.

The inquiry led by Lord Justice Brian Leveson has already examined newspapers' relations with the public and the police.

Leveson said he would investigate whether the media organizations' relationships with politicians had "got out of hand."

"It is obvious that politicians will want to gain support and need support for the messages they want to convey," he said. "But ... is there a risk that there is an inappropriate press influence? "

Coulson's appearance at the inquiry will be uncomfortable for the Conservative prime minister, whose relationships with senior executives of Murdoch's News Corp. have embroiled him in the hacking furor.

Cameron has close ties to Coulson and to Rebekah Brooks, another ex-News of the World editor and former chief of Murdoch's British newspapers. She is due to testify to the inquiry on Friday.

Both Coulson and Brooks have been arrested and questioned by police about tabloid wrongdoing, though neither has been charged.

Speculation is rife about what the pair will reveal about their relations with Cameron and his Conservative Party, whose popularity is already at a low amid national economic gloom.

The Murdoch-owned Times of London newspaper reported Wednesday that Brooks has retained supportive text messages from the prime minister, a personal friend, neighbor and occasional riding companion in the upmarket rural enclave of Chipping Norton.

There is an irony in Cameron's discomfort. It was the prime minister who asked Leveson to lead an inquiry to sift through the fallout of the hacking scandal that has rocked Britain's establishment and rattled Murdoch's News Corp. with revelations of widespread journalistic malpractice.

The inquiry has heard from reporters, police and public figures in an effort to understand why nothing was done earlier to stop the phone hacking.

Murdoch shut the 168-year-old News of the World in July after evidence emerged that it had intercepted the phone messages of a missing schoolgirl, Milly Dowler, who was later found murdered.

Murdoch has so far paid out millions to settle lawsuits from 60 actors, athletes, politicians and other public figures whose voicemails were hacked. Dozens more lawsuits have been filed.

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0 Lords reform expected in Queen's Speech

The government is expected to use the Queen's Speech to push ahead with House of Lords reform, despite strong opposition from many Conservative MPs.

Plans, back by the Lib Dems, to create elected peers are likely to be included in the address - which ministers hope will rebuild unity between the parties.

The government is also expected to announce plans to split up banks and alter rules on executive pay.

The Queen will deliver her speech to MPs and peers at about 11:30 BST.

Outlining the government's legislative plans for the next session of Parliament, she is also expected to announce a bill to ensure the UK is exempt from future eurozone bailouts; moves towards televising court proceedings and the creation of a specific offence of driving under the influence of drugs.

'Fightback speech'

It is the first Queen's Speech - the grandest event on the parliamentary calendar - since shortly after the coalition was formed. The statement usually takes place each autumn.

The contents of this speech, billed by commentators as a "fightback", have reportedly been more contentious within government than usual, as the two coalition parties attempt to assert their own priorities.

The Lib Dems and Conservatives both lost hundreds of seats in last week's local elections in England and Wales, increasing demands from some backbench MPs to change direction.

The fall-out from tax changes in the Budget and claims of overly strong links between ministers and Rupert Murdoch's News International have also led to criticism.

On Monday, several senior Tories published an "alternative Queen's Speech", calling for tax cuts and referendums on the UK's future in the European Union.

And many Conservatives have demanded that a planned Lords Reform Bill - reducing Parliament's second chamber to 300 members and making it 80% elected - is delayed.

They argue that constitutional change should not be a priority during a recession.

'Smidgen of democracy'

But it looks set to go ahead after the Lib Dems have pushed for change, which all three main parties promised in their 2010 election manifestos.

On Tuesday, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg appearing alongside Prime Minister, said: "A smidgen of democracy I don't think will go amiss - since we've been talking about it for about 100 years."

He added that he cared "a lot more" about economic and social reform, but argued that was not a reason to ignore the Lords.

Mr Cameron said Lords reform was "a perfectly sensible reform for Parliament to consider", but added that it was not a priority for him.

He said: "We are different parties, the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrat party, and we don't always agree.

"But I would argue in the last two years, the government has done a lot of things that needed to be done... although we might have had different views, we put them aside. We cut the deficit for the good of the economy."

BBC deputy political editor James Landale said it was clear the government was keen to focus less on constitutional change and more on helping the economy and families.

Our correspondent said talk in recent days that the government had softened the language of Lords' reform in response to the election results were wide of the mark.

The Queen traditionally reads her speech to Parliament on goatskin vellum, which once inscribed takes at least three days for the ink to dry, he said.
'Gladden hearts'

Another key measure expected in the Queen's Speech is the Banking Reform Bill, which would split banks into separate retail and investment arms.

This followed the financial crisis, in which the banking sector was criticised for over-exposing customers to risk.

Another bill expected to be included is one exempting the UK from the new fund to help failing European economies.

The bill would ensure the UK is not liable to contribute to the European Stability Mechanism.

Treasury sources said the move would gladden the hearts of Eurosceptic Tories and was timely given all the current uncertainties, said BBC political correspondent Carole Walker.

The anticipated Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill would bring changes to the pay of top executives, while cutting business regulation and changing rules on employment tribunals and redundancy.

This follows outcry over the packages awarded to many business leaders, sometimes in spite of poor performances by companies.

It had been thought that the bill would include a requirement for three-quarters of shareholders to approve pay deals, but this is believed to have been dropped.

Another expected move is a proposal to overhaul public sector pensions despite opposition from unions.
Saliva tests

The Crime, Communications and Courts Bill would mean police carrying out roadside checks get equipment to test drivers' saliva for traces of illegal drugs.

It would also set up a specific offence of driving under the influence of drugs, leading to a fine of up to £5,000, a motoring ban of at least a year and a possible prison sentence.

The creation of a National Crime Agency and tougher regulation of supermarkets are also expected.

Plans for easier adoption and more flexible parental leave, along with better support for special needs pupils and improved access arrangements for divorced fathers, are also understood to be included.

It is also expected there will be a draft bill on social care included in the speech.

A Department of Health source said the government was determined to push ahead with plans to tackle social care but this would take time.

Some coalition measures have been put on hold, including a bill aimed at streamlining the regulation of universities, and another introducing greater controls on water companies taking supplies from rivers.

The speech will be followed by a Commons debate on its contents

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1 Cameron and Clegg visit Essex for coalition fightback

Rolling coverage of all the day's political developments as they happen, including David Cameron and Nick Clegg staging their joint coalition fightback appearance in Essex, and Ed Miliband hosting a Q&A in Harlow

Q: What would you do about SureStart? [This comes from a SureStart employee who has been made redundant. Miliband asks her to explain what happened.]

Miliband says Labour thinks SureStart budgets should be ringfenced, because otherwise councils will treat SureStart as a low priority. He says he does not know about the situation in Essex.

Q: What would you do to help small businesses?

Miliband says local authorities and central government spend a lot of money buying services. In other countries, they use this to support local businesses. He would like the same thing to happen here?

Q: What would you do about people who go off sick when they are not sick in the NHS? [This comes from an NHS pathologist.]

Miliband says that the NHS should be "totally intolerant" of people skiving off. This should not be happening, he says. "We should find ways in which we can crack down on this," he says.

Q: What will you do to reintegrate education?

Miliband says Michael Gove is the most centralises secretary of state ever. He had an example in his constituency. If people have a problem with an academy, they have to take it up with central government.

He believes Gove stands for "education for the few not the many". Free schools involve "robbing Peter to pay Paul". The English baccalaureate will discriminate against important subjects. The creative industries are hugely important. Yet art and design does not count as an English baccalaureate subject.

He also says he would like to give more power to schools.

Q: What will you do about the NHS? Staff feel very devalued.

Miliband says he would repeal the parts of the health bill introducing free market competition.

Under Labour things would have been tough. But the government has made it worse by carrying out a reorganisation at the same time.

Labour did too many reorganisations when it was in government, he says.

The government's plans will fragment the NHS. He is making a speech to the Royal College of Nursing next week.

He ends by thanking the questioner, a nurse. People do not thank nurses enough, he says. He invites the audience to give a round of applause.

Q: Do you have any specific job creation schemes? And Why is Remploy being dismantle?

Miliband says he does have specific job creation schemes. Wasting the lives of young people is ridiculous, he says. Labour would tax bankers' bonuses and use that money to provide jobs for young people. As prime minister, he would be telling every private sector in the organisation from day one to mobilise behind that plan. Young people are not shirkers, he says.

On Remploy, he says he does not like the changes the government is making. It did not run a proper consultation. People are being made redundant when it will be tough for them to find work.

10.17am: Miliband is good at these Q&As. When people ask a question, he makes a point of using their names and asking questions about their own experiences.

10.11am: Miliband is taking questions now.

Q: Is Labour in favour of a new investment bank?

Miliband says the government has spent too much time standing up for the banks and not enough standing up for small businesses.

There should be a new investment bank, part private and part public, he says. This works in Germany and it works in the US.

Banks have a duty to realise they have to serve the economy.

Q: What would you do about housing? [This comes from someone who says his daughter has been on a council waiting list for 20 years.]

Miliband says he is sorry to hear about the questioner's daughter's experience. He says it "hurts" if she has always worked and always done the right thing.

The previous Conservative council in Harlow said it was going to freeze council house building. He says the new Labour council will look at whether it can do anything more.

The last Labour government did not do enough on housing, he says. With housing, every party of the jigsaw needs to join up: private housing, social housing and the planning system.

The government has spent two years messing up the planning system. And it has taken away targets for local authority house building.

10.06am: Ed Miliband is speaking now.

He says he wants to understand why so many people did not vote in the local elections. In Harlow, only 28.4% of people vote. He passionately believes politics can make a difference to their lives, he says.

He says Labour measures would make a difference. A Labour Queen's Speech would include measures to get people back into work.

10.03am: 10.03am: Ed Miliband is about to start his Q&A in Essex.

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0 UK politics don’t have a digital clue

Labour, Lib Dem and Conservative are all failing in their use of digital media channels, with the Labour and Lib Dem website’s even infringing the Disability Discrimination guidelines.

UK advertising agency Cheetham Bell JWT (CBJWT) carried out a Digtal MOT report of the three parties ahead of the local elections which took place last week on Thursday. The report looks at the use of a number of digital channels including website effectiveness and accessibility, use of social media, and search engine activity. It is the same report CBJWT use to assess the performance of hundreds of household brands each year.

All three parties failed to achieve the pass mark criteria of 60 out of a possible 105.

Conservatives came the closest with 57, Lib Dems in second place with 54 and Labour trailed last with 51.
Most damaging findings

Some of the most damaging findings of the report included:

1. Poor Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

None of three parties ranked in pages 1-4 of the Google Search Engine Result Pages (SERPs) for the term “local elections”, despite there being approximately 50,000 searches per month for that term. Other key search terms including immigration, NHS and foreign policy failed to find a single mention of the three parties. The parties are failing to connect wit these potential voters.

2. Poor or no consideration for mobile users

Last year, 45% of UK citizens accessed the internet from their mobile phone, according to findings by the Office of National Statistics (ONS). Labour nor the Lib Dems even have a mobile website and the Conservatives mobile site is uninspiring and difficult to read.

3. Lazy and uninspiring use of social media

The combined total Facebook updates from the three parties in the month leading up to the local elections is only 68. The total number of tweets over the same period is a meagre 79. There is no attempt to really engage with their users.

The parties are simply replicating existing activity by posting updates about activities and news rather than using them to really interact with voters. It is difficult to establish which Twitter accounts are real, as there are three for each party and none of the Tories accounts are rated as official.

4. Failure to comply with Disability Discrimination Guidelines

Labour and the Liberal Democrats are failing to check that their website articles are using alt text that can be read by visually impaired voters. Some pages, like the one shown below, feature 12 accessibility errors.

CBJWT Chief Executive David Bell who commissioned the report said: “We were genuinely shocked at the lack of understanding and strategy this digital MOT has revealed among the major political parties. The rest of the world is embracing the digital age but politicians are clinging to the same old clumsy, environmentally unfriendly and scattergun electioneering approach – door drops, newspaper inserts, posters etc. With political party funding under scrutiny, politicians have to look to digital media as a much more cost effective and targeted way to reach voters, particularly the digitally savvy e-lectorate, who are far more likely to engage with a candidate on Facebook or Google them than to read a leaflet that comes through the door with a handful of pizza menus.”
Some positives

- Lib Dems are the clear leaders in blogging – with longer articles, regular updates and reader interaction. The Tories have a much less active blog roll, while Labour have yet to start a blog at all; another missed opportunity to connect with voters and drive SEO

- Labour’s website is easy to use and has a clear strategy and purpose with strong calls to action, good links to their social media and opportunities for data collection.

- The Tories are the clear leaders in video content, both on their website and on YouTube

The Digital MOT comes as a YouGov survey found support for the Conservative party had fallen to 29%, 11 points behind Labour on 40%, and the Conservatives’ lowest rating since 2004. CBJWT’s Digital Director Craig Johnson comments: “We’ve all seen how well digital media can work to reach the 21st century e-lectorate. Barack Obama recently held a White House briefing followed by a Google + broadcast where voters had to join his circle to join in and take part which generated over 1million followers.  Britain’s political parties need to stop using digital media to talk at us and embrace it as a chance to engage with us, as frightening as that might be. If fish and chip shops can do it, then so can the people who want to run this country.”

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0 Vote 2012: Reaction to local election results

Senior politicians have been reacting to results in the English and Welsh local elections, in which Labour scored a string of victories.

David Cameron, Conservative leader

"While I'm sorry that Conservative councillors who worked hard lost their seats, in places like Amber Valley in Derbyshire, the heart of England - a part that's actually been Labour for decades, we still have a Conservative council.

"Obviously, when you're taking difficult decisions, when we're trying to bring the country out of the debt, the deficit, and the broken economy that Labour left us, there aren't easy decisions.

"But we've got to make sure we do everything to demonstrate that we're on the side of people who work hard and do the right thing for themselves and their families.

"That's who we're fighting for, that's who we must govern for."

Ed Miliband, Labour leader

"People are hurting, people are suffering. People are suffering from the recession.

"People are suffering from a government that has raised taxes for them and has cut taxes for millionaires.

"I think that's what we saw last night and I hope David Cameron takes some notice. And this is where we've got more work to do, in saying to those people, 'Look, Labour can change Britain for the better.'

"I know you've invested your hopes in politicians before and they've disappointed you, but we can change this country so it works for you."

Nick Clegg, Liberal Democrat leader

"It's been a disappointing and difficult night for the Liberal Democrats.

"I'm really sad that so many colleagues and friends, Liberal Democrat councillors who've worked so hard, so tirelessly for so many years, for communities and families in their local areas, have lost their seats.

"I want to pay tribute to all the great work that they have done. I'm determined that we will continue to play our role in rescuing, repairing and reforming the British economy.

"It's not an easy job and it can't be done overnight but our duty is to boost jobs and investment and to restore a sense of hope and optimism to our country."

Nigel Farage, UKIP leader

"It's good steady progress, and it reflects the last 18 months, that our share of the vote is going up and up and up.

"Yes, we're getting Conservatives voting for us, but it's not just Conservatives, because those results are the same in Labour seats as they are in Tory seats.

"People used to just lend their vote to UKIP, in a European election, and indeed we've done very well in a couple of those, but now they're becoming UKIP voters in all forms of elections.

"If we can continue this momentum, then next year and the year after, we will start to win council seats in real numbers."

George Galloway, Respect Party

"Five weeks, five seats - wait until we've been here 52 weeks. This is a sensational result; it's the story of the night, I think. Respect has won seats off all the main parties. They are demanding change in Bradford and we're determined to deliver it."

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