Category Archives: Religion and Politics

Recent ComRes Polls

This post summarizes findings from three recent ComRes polls of the general public aged 18 and over and which have touched on religious issues. Defender of the Faith Pretty strong numerical support for the continuation of the faith links of … Continue reading

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Gay Marriage Revisited

Some Conservative politicians are blaming the Coalition’s losses in last Thursday’s local elections on the Government’s energetic pursuit of (essentially Liberal Democrat) policies which voters deem unimportant. The reform of the House of Lords and the legalization of gay marriage … Continue reading

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Anti-Conservative Vote

Religion is the single most powerful predictor (among eight factors) of an individual’s likelihood to say that they would never vote Conservative, with 44% of those with no faith rejecting the possibility of supporting the Tories, compared with 35% of … Continue reading

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Theresa May’s Bad Hair Day

Just over half (54%) of the British public think that Home Secretary Theresa May has badly handled the issue of the deportation to his native Jordan of Abu Qatada al-Filistini, the radical Muslim cleric given asylum in Britain in 1994 … Continue reading

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London Mayoral Elections

Just a week after the publication of the Demos report Faithful Citizens, which established linkages between people of faith and progressive politics, comes evidence that religious issues are creeping into the forthcoming and hotly-contested elections for London’s Mayor. This is … Continue reading

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Sunday Trading and the Olympics

Chancellor George Osborne is expected to use his budget speech today formally to announce Government plans to introduce emergency legislation to suspend the Sunday Trading Act 1994 for eight weeks from 22 July 2012, during the period around the Olympic and Paralympic Games, in a move designed to signal to the world that Britain is ‘open for business’. Sunday shopping hours would thus be deregulated in England and Wales, permitting large shops to open for more than six hours on Sundays for the first time. No public consultation on the matter is mooted. Although the relaxation would be temporary, the Treasury has indicated that it will regard the suspension as an experiment, quantifying the economic effects of deregulation. Continue reading

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Western European Religion

There is no real consensus of public opinion in matters of religion, according to a new multinational poll from YouGov@Cambridge, published in connection with a symposium on the future of Europe, held at the British Academy on 15 March 2012. … Continue reading

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Gay Marriage and the Church

The debate about gay marriage has become more charged during recent weeks, as the Government’s plans for its legalization in England and Wales approach the public consultation stage. In particular, there has been heavyweight opposition to same-sex (gay) marriage from … Continue reading

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Occupy London Impact

Almost three-quarters (71%) of Britons believe that the Occupy London anti-capitalist campsite outside St Paul’s Cathedral, evicted by police and bailiffs in the early hours of 28 February 2012, did not achieve much or anything at all, against 18% who … Continue reading

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