Chris Ringland
Chris joined the Evangelical Alliance as public policy officer for Scotland in 2021. In this role he represents our membership of churches, charities, individuals and families to the Scottish Government and Scottish Parliament, seeking to make Jesus known. He has also completed the Evangelical Alliance's Public Leadership programme. Previously, Chris worked in the Scottish Parliament. He is originally from Northern Ireland and completed degrees in both Geography & Politics and Public Policy in Scotland, and is a massive West Ham United fan (champions of Europe 2023). He is married to Eilidh.
Seizing this opportunity to witness in the community
13 May 2020Over the past five years my time has been split between Scotland and Northern Ireland, and this travelling back and forth combined with the coronavirus crisis has given me much food for thought about what a blessing local community is in our lives. Many of us, and within my generation especially, spend much time thinking globally in our, indeed, increasingly globalised world. In so many ways this is a fantastic - we pray for and take part in world mission to fulfil the great commission and…
Read more...
Holyrood's response to the coronavirus pandemic
6 April 2020On Wednesday, 1 April, the Scottish Parliament unanimously passed the emergency Coronavirus (Scotland) Bill. Its purpose was primarily to make changes within Holyrood’s devolved powers of housing and justice, and it was introduced, amended and passed within a single day. These are the key changes: Housing The minimum notice period that landlords must give to private and social tenants has been increased to six months for the vast majority of circumstances. This is intended to relieve pressure…
Read more...
Public Leader Scotland: Weekend update
6 February 2020The diversity, breadth of experience and potential amongst participants in the room made for an incredibly inspiring weekend as we engaged with guest speakers and prayed together.The newly-appointed UK director of the Evangelical Alliance, Peter Lynas, opened the weekend with a session on engaging culture, showing us how Jesus’ love for the world speaks right into our culture in the west, one which is dominated by the idea of ‘progress’, individualism and consumerism. Using the example of…
Read more...
The ‘Luanda Leaks’ and our desire for justice
23 January 2020The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists were given access to more than 700,000 leaked documents about dos Santos’ financial activities which led to the charges being made against her. Her father is former Angola President José Eduardo dos Santos, who was in charge from 1979 to 2017 - and it was this connection that was at the heart of the allegations. The ‘Luanda Leaks’ centre around dos Santos’ alleged role in a series of suspicious business deals involving eye-watering…
Read more...
A new year at Holyrood
16 January 2020It feels like something of a new season in politics across the United Kingdom as December’s General Election saw a new UK Government established with a significant majority. This matters because it meant that the UK’s Brexit Withdrawal Agreement duly passed by 99 votes last week, ending the uncertainty of whether Brexit would actually happen or not. It also proved to be a catalyst for the restoration of the Northern Ireland Executive in Stormont, and gave Prime Minister Boris Johnson renewed…
Read more...
Responding to the Circular Economy Bill
11 December 2019Until the 19th December next week, everyone in Scotland has the opportunity to contribute to the Scottish Government’s consultation on their proposed Circular Economy Bill. The Scottish Government’s Consultation Hub is accessible and makes it possible for individuals, churches or charities to respond to legislative proposals with ease.In light of the increasing recognition that our planet is being damaged by both the way we do business within our economy and our own individual consumption…
Read more...
A different contest north of the border
3 December 2019Yes, this is the “Brexit election”. But here in Scotland, the question of independence is also very much in people’s minds as they think about how they will vote on 12thDecember.Brexit and IndependenceSince the 2014 independence referendum, the UK Government has devolved further powers to the Scottish Parliament on the recommendation of the Smith Commission (eventually passed into law as the Scotland Act 2016). With the recognition that many local issues are now being decided at Holyrood,…
Read more...