Articles by Andrew Tettenborn

A lot can happen in a century and a half. In 1871 Parliament broke the hold of the established church on university education with the Universities Tests Act. This forbade Oxford, Cambridge and Durham from requiring its members to hold or profess any religious belief. The preamble is well worth a read: Whereas it is expedient that the benefits of … [Read on]

Legal cases rarely make for very exciting reading. The Court of Appeal’s decision today, that the High Court should not have made a declaration about the limited powers of comparatively young teenagers to consent to potentially drastic gender reassignment at the Tavistock Clinic, is no exception. Unless you suffer from serious insomnia, it is not recommended entertainment (if you are … [Read on]

High-profile discrimination cases in the courts are regularly said to demonstrate the degree of intolerance and bigotry that still infest Britain today, and the need to take steps to do something about it. An employment tribunal case last week is a case in point, but perhaps not in the way you might expect.  In January 2019 Seyi Omooba, a hitherto … [Read on]

It’s not often that the police find themselves called in to deal with disputes within the church. Last month, however, they were. Ben John of Christian Concern, a traditionalist ginger group, issued a 15-minute video attacking the C of E’s 2020 initiative Living in Love and Faith (Living in Love and Faith), a substantial publication whose professed aim is to … [Read on]