24 Nov

Top stories
The government has published a bill to make sex education compulsory in all state-run primary and secondary schools in England. The Children, Schools and Families bill also sets out the principles under which schools must teach sex education. The principles require that sex education "reflects a reasonable range of...cultural and other perspectives" and promotes "equality", "diversity" and "rights". John Smeaton, SPUC director, commented: "The bill's principles will be used to ensure that pro-abortion propaganda dominates the content of sex education." [John Smeaton, 19 November] http://is.gd/4YWST Related story: Government's Queen's speech schools bill will undermine child safety [John Smeaton, 18 November] http://is.gd/4XUMF

It has been revealed that a man was misdiagnosed for 23 years as being in a coma-like state. Rom Houben, a German man, was paralysed by a car accident in 1983. Until three years ago, Mr Houben had been misdiagnosed as being in a persistent vegetative state (PVS, more correctly termed PNS or persistent non-responsive state). Doctors assumed he was unconscious, when in fact he has near-normal brain function and can hear and understand his surroundings. Following new tests which revealed the misdiagnosis, Mr Houben has been provided with equipment to read and type. Janet Thomas of No Less Human, a group within SPUC Pro-Life, commented: "This case highlights the huge dangers in assessing profoundly disabled people as having lives not worth living." [John Smeaton, 23 November] http://is.gd/51XO7

The upper house of the South Australian parliament has voted to reject a bill to allow euthanasia tabled by Mark Parnell. Anthony Ozimic, SPUC Pro-Life's communications mananger and an expatriate Australian, commented: "Those seeking to develop civilised values which respect the sanctity of human life should be encouraged by this vote."
[John Smeaton, 18 November] http://is.gd/4Y3YU

Other stories

Abortion

• Monsignor Reilly, founder of Helpers of God's Precious Infants, will visit England 4-5 Dec [John Smeaton, 24 November] http://is.gd/52Cdf

Embryology; fertility treatment; stem cells

• Ignoring personhood leads to concentration camps, says archbishop [John Smeaton, 14 November] http://is.gd/52Erf

Population

• UN agency says climate change should be combatted by reducing population growth through contraception [John Smeaton, 20 November] http://is.gd/4ZH5J

Euthanasia and assisted suicide; disability

• Catholic bishops of England and Wales deliver powerful response assisted suicide guidelines [John Smeaton, 20 November] http://is.gd/52FfL
• Leading bioethicist warns of "radical remaking of society" [John Smeaton, 17 November] http://is.gd/4X5b8
• Top lawyers and former judges attack assisted suicide guidelines [John Smeaton, 14 November] http://is.gd/52Ezt

Marriage and family; sexual ethics

• Lithuania defends parents as primary educators [John Smeaton, 22 November] http://is.gd/52FjH
• English bishop questions Catholic teaching on contraception [John Smeaton, 20 November] http://is.gd/4ZPpQ