Motion
Moved by
That the Bill do now pass.
(LD)
My Lords, in moving that this Bill do now pass, can I just say
how delighted I am that this landmark Bill has reached Third
Reading and will shortly conclude its journey through this place?
I am grateful for the wide support it has received from noble
Lords and from Humanists UK, which has assisted me
throughout.
Colleagues have rightly recognised the importance of enabling
children to take part in inclusive assemblies as part of their
school day, and the pressing need to address the current
injustice whereby those children who do not wish to take part in
collective worship can at best be left twiddling their thumbs and
at worst be ostracised from their peers, while the structured
school day carries on without them.
The UK is the only sovereign state in the world to impose worship
in all state schools, including those without a religious
character. This Bill would free up schools to hold assemblies on
topics parents want to see covered and uphold children’s rights
to an inclusive education. It would also reflect the
recommendations from the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child,
which has urged the UK to repeal these collective worship
laws.
Finally, I just place on the record my heartfelt thanks to all
noble Lords who have engaged with this Bill throughout its
progress. It has led to robust and stimulating debate about the
moral framework within which we educate our children. I wish the
Bill well on its next stages in the other place, where the chair
of the All-Party Parliamentary Humanist Group, , intends to pick it up.
Meanwhile, I beg to move
Bill passed and sent to the Commons.
