Liam Gibson, blogpost

The UK Government says it will overrule the Northern Ireland Minister of Education if she refuses to enforce the “radical” pro-abortion sex education agenda promoted by the United Nations. In response to this, parents have been urged to resist “this poisonous ideology”.

According to the BBC, Shailesh Vara, who became the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when Brandon Lewis quit the post in July, has written to the Education Minister, Michelle McIlveen, to inform her of his intention to impose sex education in line with the recommendations of the 2018 report of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).

These recommendations were included in section 9 of the Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act that legalised abortion up to birth in Northern Ireland.

In 2021, the then Secretary of State, Brandon Lewis, introduced regulations giving himself the power to direct Stormont ministers to ignore the devolution settlement and implement his policies mandating a massive expansion of abortion facilities in the Province. This legislation applies to all recommendations of the CEDAW report, including sex education and whatever measures the Government deems necessary to promote abortion as well as change public attitudes towards it.

Indoctrination, not education

The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) believes that the Secretary of State exceeded his lawful authority when he issued the Regulations and is challenging them in court. The case is due to be heard by the Court of Appeal in October.

Commenting on the mooted implementation of the CEDAW agenda, Liam Gibson, SPUC’s Policy and Legal Officer, said: “This is not an idle threat from the Secretary of State and parents of school-aged children need to take this very seriously.

“When the Northern Ireland Office talks about imposing the recommendations contained in the 2018 CEDAW report, parents need to understand that this means that their children will be exposed to a radical agenda that may facilitate more abortion, including abortions for underage girls without the knowledge of their parents.

“The CEDAW recommendations even include measures to change existing perceptions of motherhood. This is not education, it is indoctrination.”

“Totally disingenuous”

When the Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act was being debated in 2019, Prime Minister Theresa May’s Government claimed that the implementation of the CEDAW recommendations was required under the UK’s human rights obligations. Since then, the Government has admitted that there was no such obligation but has nevertheless remained committed to imposing the radical agenda set out in the CEDAW report.

SPUC’s Mr Gibson said: “It is totally disingenuous for the Secretary of State to claim that he’s under a legal obligation to impose compulsory sex education. The Government doesn’t have to do anything it doesn’t want to do. Mr Vara is a Minister in a Conservative Government with a massive majority; it would be very easy for the Government to remove an obligation it placed on itself.

“Parents need to protect their children from this poisonous ideology. They should speak with the headteachers and tell them that they do not want this radical sexual agenda forced on their children. If enough parents object to this policy, the Government will have to back off.” 

SPUC’s ongoing legal action

In its legal action, SPUC has highlighted several serious problems with the abortion regulations introduced by Brandon Lewis in 2021 and 2022. In particular, the regulations amend the terms of the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

Mr Gibson continued: “Our legal actions are based on the principle that section 9 of the Northern Ireland (Executive Formation, etc.) Act 2019 didn’t give the Secretary of State the power to override the terms of the devolution settlement – for example, changes to the Ministerial Code.

“We believe the Secretary of State has gone beyond his legal authority and we hope the Court of Appeal will agree. Accordingly, the threat to direct the Minister of Education to compel schools to teach the UN’s radical sex education agenda shows that the concerns we have raised in court are justified.

“If our case succeeds in establishing the illegality of the Regulations, the directions made by the Secretary of State will have to be withdrawn.”

SPUC’s challenge will be heard in late October. A judgement in the case is not expected before the end of the year.