News Bulletin 30 November 2012

Proposals by the Government’s embryology regulator to create genetically modified babies with three or four biological parents, should be rejected, according to Dr Calum MacKellar, a leading bioethics expert — Pressure is mounting on the Government to reform a controversial law which criminalises “insulting” words or behaviour — Head teachers in Sweden have been told they ‘can’ take pupils to Christmas services in church – but Jesus ‘cannot’ be mentioned — The Prime Minister David Cameron is facing a rebellion by 118 of his own MPs over plans to redefine marriage — Hundreds of parents in Lanarkshire have signed a petition calling for an explicit sex education DVD to be removed from the classroom — Journalists working for the Associated Press have been warned not to use the word ‘homophobia’ in their reports because it is inaccurate — Four schools in America face court action unless they agree to put a children’s storybook about lesbian mums back on library shelves — And in the UK, School lessons on Christianity can be incoherent, and lacking academic challenge a University of Oxford lecturer has warned.