Oh Lord! Now school prayers may infringe pupils’ human rights

PUPILS in Scotland could soon be allowed to opt out of school prayers – because being forced to attend breaches their human rights.

At the moment, pupils in Scotland can only be excused from religious worship in school with the permission of their parents.

But the rule could be scrapped after government ministers agreed to review a law dating back to 1872.

English and Welsh pupils can make the decision to withdraw from assemblies and other forms of religious worship themselves, without the input of their parents.

Now children north of the Border could soon be given the same right after campaigners successfully argued that compulsory prayers infringed human rights. The decision comes after the United Nations Children’s Rights Committee recommended in June that children be given the right to withdraw from religious worship.

The Scottish Government ruled out a review of policy at the time but has bowed to pressure from the Humanist Society of Scotland which secured a judicial review at the highest court in the land.

The hearing has been shelved for three months while the government considers a change to the law.

Gordon MacRae, chief executive of the humanist charity which campaigns for the rights of non-religious people in Scotland, recently criticised the government for not giving young Scots a choice despite trusting them ‘to get married, join the army and vote in elections and for the constitutional future of Scotland’.

Mr MacRae added: ‘Scottish ministers do not trust them to make their decisions about attending religious observance or to give them the same rights as those in England and Wales.’

Despite welcoming the consultation, the Rev Dr Richard Frazer, convener of the Church and Society Council at the Church of Scotland, said it was not a decision that ‘should be taken by any one section of society’ but was a ‘question for Scotland as a whole’.

He added: ‘Within our diverse and segmented society the Church feels that retaining a space for young people of all faiths and none to meet, to share and to understand one another’s values, world views and beliefs, remains a vital hope for the future.’

A spokesman for the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland said yesterday: ‘Catholic schools are sensitive to the right of parents to withdraw their children, as a matter of conscience and not simply as a matter of preference, but would hope that all children benefit from participation.’

A Scottish Government spokesman said: ‘We believe religious observance in schools should support the values of a diverse, outward-looking Scotland, which encourages young people to develop their own beliefs and values and understand and respect the beliefs and values of others.’

‘It’s a question for Scotland as a whole’