The Catholic blogs editor of the Daily Telegraph, Damian Thompson, thinks it’s “terrific news”.
[A]s the Catholic Herald will report this week, Bishop Malcolm McMahon, the Catholic bishop with the education portfolio in the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, has backed the Conservatives’ proposal for “free schools”.
[Tory leader] David Cameron had a meeting with Archbishop Vincent Nichols [leader of the silly buggers in England and Wales] the other day which I gather went very well – and now comes this specific endorsement from Bishop McMahon (incidentally a veteran Left-winger, but with an open mind). Lots of credit should go to [shadow schools minister] Michael Gove, the Tories’ brightest star, who prepared the ground for this breakthrough in his own meeting with Archbishop Nichols.
So this is the child abuse the Tories have in mind if they get in at the general election in the spring.
Gove is quoted as saying to the Catholic Herald, “I’m a huge admirer of the contribution that the Catholic Church has made to education in Britain. I hope our legislative changes will help the Church to establish schools that will be popular with parents and will continue the tradition of educational excellence that the Church has already established.”
Whatever excellence such schools might manage in some subject areas, they are still religious schools, and will have all kinds of exemptions from teaching a balanced view of sexuality and relationships, e.g. they will be able, no doubt, to tell gay kids that their sexuality is an “intrinsic moral evil”.
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See also:
We need more religion in schools – not
Today, children, we’re going to tell you how evil you are
1 comment:
If Thompson thinks McMahon is a left winger I'd hate to think what it takes before he brands any Catholic a right wing extremist!
It was only a couple of years back that all UK Catholic educational establishments (from junior schools through to teacher training colleges) were ordered to ban Amnesty International student groups, which many teachers I know regard as one of the best ways for kids to learn from responsible professionals how to run campaign groups.
This because AI took a 'no position' (i.e. neutral)stance on supporting prisoners involved in things like enabling women to get abortions.
That's neutral - as in allowing AI members to decide for themselves over individual cases - and not 'pro abortion'.
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