United Kingdom

The Latest

As UK lawmakers revisit assisted suicide, palliative care prof says ‘aid in dying’ advocacy misleads

May 21, 2021

A peer in the House of Lords has put forward a proposal to revisit the legalization of assisted suicide in... Read more

Máire Lea-Wilson with her son, Aidan.

Meet the mother challenging the UK’s Down syndrome abortion law

May 20, 2021

Máire Lea-Wilson will take part in a landmark High Court case in July. Read more

Relatives of those killed during the Ballymurphy massacre demonstrate in Dublin, Ireland, Jan. 30, 2014. Credit: Sinn Féin via Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

After decades, Northern Ireland inquest recognizes victims of Ballymurphy Massacre

May 14, 2021

By CNA Staff

A Catholic priest, a mother of eight, and at least seven other civilians were wrongly killed by British soldiers in... Read more

The Royal Courts of Justice, which houses the High Court and Court of Appeal of England and Wales.

Court to hear challenge to UK’s Down syndrome abortion law in July

May 4, 2021

Heidi Crowter, a woman with Down syndrome, and Máire Lea-Wilson, a mother whose 23-month-old son has the genetic condition, are... Read more

Baby Feet. Credit: Morgan via Flickr (CC BY 2.0).

UK pro-lifers urge authorities to end ‘cruel experiment’ of at-home medical abortions

Mar 30, 2021

Pro-lifers in the U.K. are urging authorities to end temporary permission for at-home medical abortions, describing measures introduced at the... Read more

Catholic doctor calls for independent inquiry into DNR notices for COVID-19 patients with learning disabilities

Feb 14, 2021

A Catholic doctor called on Sunday for an independent inquiry into reports that COVID-19 patients with learning disabilities have been... Read more

Scottish MP calls for end to UK two-child tax credit limit

Dec 15, 2020

A Scottish member of Parliament is calling on the UK government to end a two-child limit on tax credits and... Read more

Report: Two-child limit on UK tax benefits pushes some women to abortion

Dec 6, 2020

Nine months after UK Catholic leaders called for the abolition of a two-child limit on tax credits and other benefits... Read more

The Royal Courts of Justice house the High Court and Court of Appeal of England and Wales.

In landmark ruling, U.K. high court says children unlikely to be able to give informed consent to puberty blockers

Dec 2, 2020

By CNA Staff

The U.K.’s high court ruled Tuesday that children are unlikely to be mature enough to give informed consent to medical... Read more

London Metropolitan Police officers.

UK police halt baptism in London church over coronavirus restrictions

Nov 16, 2020

Police halted a baptism in a Baptist church in London on Sunday, citing the country’s coronavirus restrictions that include bans... Read more

U.K. health secretary Matt Hancock.

UK health secretary: traveling abroad for assisted suicide permitted under lockdown

Nov 6, 2020

U.K. health secretary Matt Hancock said Thursday that people traveling abroad for assisted suicide would not be breaking strict new... Read more

Bishop Paul McAleenan, center, meets charity workers and volunteers helping refugees in Dover, England, Sept. 15, 2020.

Catholic bishop laments deaths of children after migrant boat sinks in English Channel

Oct 28, 2020

A Catholic bishop expressed sorrow Wednesday after a migrant boat sank in the English Channel, killing four members of a... Read more

The Royal Courts of Justice houses the High Court and Court of Appeal of England and Wales.

UK court to review Down Syndrome abortion law

Oct 19, 2020

The High Court of England and Wales has agreed to hear a challenge to the country’s abortion law, which allows... Read more

Bishop Paul McAleenan, lead bishop for migrants and refugees of the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales.

Catholic bishop: UK and France must tackle ‘underlying reasons’ for rise in English Channel migrant crossings

Jul 23, 2020

A Catholic bishop has urged the U.K. and France to address the “underlying reasons” for a rise in migrants risking... Read more

Bishop Paul McAleenan, lead bishop for migrants and refugees of the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales.

UK Catholic bishops: visa rules are causing supply priest shortage

Jun 11, 2020

U.K. visa rules are leaving parishes without supply priests, Catholic bishops said Tuesday.  Read more

Pierpaolo Finaldi, CEO of the Catholic Truth Society. Courtesy of CTS.

‘It’s a pretty huge hit to take’: Lockdown deals blow to Catholic publishers

Jun 2, 2020

Catholic publishers in the United Kingdom are turning to social media and online sales in an effort to survive the... Read more

Cardinal Vincent Nichols of Westminster.

English cardinal asks why car showrooms can open but not churches

May 30, 2020

An English cardinal will ask Sunday why the government has failed to set a date for churches to reopen when... Read more

St. Peter Port, the capital of Guernsey.

Island in English Channel permits public Masses as UK churches remain closed

May 28, 2020

The first public Masses in the British Isles since the coronavirus lockdown will be celebrated Monday on the island of... Read more

Union Jack bunting across the windows of Ely Court care home, in Cardiff, Wales.

Catholics call for public inquiry into UK nursing home deaths

May 23, 2020

Catholics are calling for a public investigation into why so many elderly people have died in U.K. nursing homes during... Read more

The Royal Courts of Justice, London. Editorial

UK court order requiring contraceptive device for disabled woman is ‘deeply problematic’, says bioethicist

Apr 23, 2020

A British judge’s order requiring a contraceptive device be implanted in a woman with learning disabilities against her will is... Read more