Christian legal rulings risk civil unrest, court warned

A barrister has warned that religious freedoms in the UK “count for nothing” and said that, "There will be a collision between the established faith of this land and judicial decisions and that will lead to civil unrest".

The barrister, Paul Diamond, is acting on behalf of Gary McFarlane, a sacked Relate counsellor who is currently claiming the right to appeal against an Employment Appeal Tribunal ruling in December which upheld an earlier Tribunal decision that he was not discriminated against when he was sacked for saying he would not offer counselling to same-sex couples.

Mr McFarlane’s case follows a number of recent rulings that have put Christians' rights in the workplace under the spotlight. These include the cases of Shirley Caplin, Nadia Eweida and Lillian Ladele.

Gary McFarlane alleged that Relate had failed to accommodate his religious beliefs. He began working for Relate in Avon in 2003 but was dismissed in March 2008 after, he alleges, he was asked by a manager to state his views on same-sex relationships. Mr McFarlane said he had no objection to others in Relate counselling couples needing advice on same-sex activity, but for him it was a matter of conscience. 

Gary McFarlane appealed to the Employment Appeal Tribunal against the decision of an Employment Tribunal in January 2009 which found that he had not suffered either direct or indirect discrimination on the grounds of his religion or belief and that he was not unfairly dismissed. The Tribunal found, however, that Relate Avon should have dismissed him with notice and Relate was ordered to pay him £138.

The Appeal Tribunal dismissed Mr MacFarlane's appeal on all counts.

Mr Diamond, supported by former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey, also submitted an application requesting that a specialist panel of five judges with a "proven sensitivity and understanding of religious issues" should be be set up to hear Mr McFarlane’s case and future cases involving religious rights.

Lord Carey, in his written statement, said that recent decisions by the courts were “but a short step from the dismissal of a sincere Christian from employment to a religious bar to any employment for Christians."

The judge has not yet ruled on whether permission could be granted for Mr McFarlane to appeal.