Danny Webster
Danny joined the Evangelical Alliance in 2008 and has held a range of roles in the advocacy team. He currently leads the advocacy team's work across the UK including public policy work an engagement with the parliaments and assemblies, and respective governments. Before working for the Evangelical Alliance, Danny, who has degrees in politics and political philosophy, worked in parliament for an MP. Danny is passionate about encouraging Christians to integrate their faith with all areas of their life, especially when it comes to helping them take on leadership outside the church, and helped initiate the Evangelical Alliance's Public Leadership programme. He frequently provides comment on current political issues, both in Evangelical Alliance publications and to the press.
How ambitious was the Queen’s Speech?
11 May 2022Levelling up One key piece of legislation that will shortly be introduced to parliament is the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill. This will pass into law some of the measures the government has already committed to, and will likely also include proposals to reform the planning system and give local councils more powers. While this is part of a strategy to address economic disparities across the UK, the measures are part of longer-term plans and will not make an immediate impact on the…
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Could tweeting Bible verses land you in jail?
8 April 2022As a result, she was investigated under the Finnish Criminal Code for the offence of “ethnic agitation” which could result in imprisonment for up to two years. The investigation by the prosecutors also drew in a pamphlet that she had written in 2004 on human sexuality for a Christian foundation. The police had planned to drop the charges but the state prosecutor reopened the case. Räsänen was charged in April 2021 and the case came to court in January 2022. Alongside the Finnish MP, Bishop…
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Confusion over government conversion therapy plans
1 April 2022ITV News reported that the Prime Minister had taken a decision not to press ahead with a legislative ban on conversion therapy for England and Wales, after a consultation process earlier this year. This was confirmed by a government spokesperson, but later the same evening came news that the government had had a further change of view and would now be banning conversion therapy relating to sexual orientation but not transgender identity. This update also noted that the Prime Minister wanted to…
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Families and churches called on to home Ukrainians fleeing the war
14 March 2022The new scheme enables anyone to offer a room or a house to people fleeing the war, with some scrutiny expected to ensure both those offering their homes and those seeking accommodation do not abuse the scheme. Hosts are expected to nominate a named person or family that they are offering their accommodation to, however, organisations and government are likely to play a role in managing the process. People travelling from Ukraine to the UK on this visa scheme will have leave to remain in the UK…
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Living with Covid?
23 February 2022With almost immediate effect, all the rules in England relating to what happens if someone tests positive for Covid will be removed and replaced with advice for how to manage the illness. This means that as well as individuals not being required by law to isolate, those who live with them will not have to take daily tests (or be required to isolate if not vaccinated). Alongside this, contact tracing will end, and as a result you will not have to test or isolate if you have been in contact with…
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Conversion therapy: Ending abuse while enabling support
28 January 2022The UK government are in the final week of consulting on proposals that will affect England and Wales, in Scotland a parliamentary committee has recently published a report calling for a ban, and in Northern Ireland proposals are expected later this year.
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Garden parties and rules that apply to other people
11 January 2022On 20 May that year I was a little distracted as I was driving my wife to hospital for the second time that day. Earlier I had to wait in a corridor while she was assessed and we were then sent home. The following morning my daughter was born and when she was two hours old, I said goodbye to her and my wife as they went into the ward for the next two days. It was Oliver Dowden MP leading the briefing that day, and he encouraged the public to only meet (outdoors) one person not in their…
Read more... Government plans to ban conversion therapy need scrutiny to protect human rights
29 October 2021Since the government first pledged a ban in 2018, the Evangelical Alliance has consistently pressed for detail about what this would involve and clarity as to the definition, to ensure that human rights are kept central and religious freedom is protected. More recently, the Evangelical Alliance has pressed the government to fulfil its twin aims to ban coercive and abusive practices and to ensure spiritual support is protected. While the policy aims of the current consultation are broadly in…
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It’s time to be salt and light and encourage our MPs
19 October 2021Speaking in the House of Commons Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “When he died, he was doing what he firmly believed was the most important part of any MP's job – offering help to those in need". Johnson went on to add that Sir David was "dedicated, passionate, firm in his beliefs but never anything less than respectful to those who thought differently”. Sir David, MP for Southend West, died on Friday, 15 October following a knife attack while conducting his regular constituency surgery at a…
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Widely criticised aid cuts expose limits of the law
14 July 2021At the 2021 budget the chancellor announced that development assistance would reduce from 0.7 per cent of gross national income to 0.5 per cent. The Conservative Party had pledged in their 2019 election manifesto that they would maintain the level of spending. It had been a centre piece of the coalition government between 2010-2015, that despite austerity measures introduced the level of development spending rose to meet the long-established target, which had never previously been achieved.…
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England: Legal restrictions on church gatherings set to end
14 July 2021The Prime Minister has set out how England would proceed to step 4 (the removal of all legal limits on social contact) from 19 July. Advice will replace most legal restrictions and decisions on whether to uphold certain measures will be left to personal conscience. Despite case numbers continuing to climb, possibly reaching levels seen in January over the next two weeks, the relaxation is based on the vaccination programme significantly weakening the link between infections, hospitalisations…
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