An image of the Scottish Parliament building at Holyrood with Calton Hill and the city of Edinburgh in the background.

2023 in campaigns

January 27, 2023

2023 looks set be a pivotal year for humanism in Scotland. We look forward to the passing of a law to protect women from harassment outside abortion clinics and we hope that new rules will follow to ensure dignity in dying. But we need your help to keep making noise about these causes. We’ll also continue our campaign to reduce the influence of religion on Scottish education.

Fraser Sutherland, CEO of Humanist Society Scotland, addressing a crowd in front of a Humanist Society Scotland banner.

There are wide-reaching, positive social changes being discussed at Parliament and in the corridors of power right now. We need your support to help us get across the line on our campaigns to protect the right to access abortion and establish a compassionate end-of-life choice for dying people.

Humanist Society Scotland continues to lead the efforts to ensure our school education system is brought truly into the 21st century and see undue religious influence on teachers and students end.
Fraser Sutherland, CEO of Humanist Society Scotland.

Assisted Dying

As humanists, we want people to have as much choice as possible over the way they die. In 2021, Liam McArthur MSP proposed a new law that would allow assisted dying for terminally ill adults in Scotland. The proposed law would only apply to adults at the end of their life. It would also include safeguards for people with disabilities. A consultation on the idea received a record-breaking 14,000 responses with a large majority in favour. We helped gather support for the cause with our co-campaigners at Dignity in Dying Scotland and Friends at the End. Soon, Mr McArthur’s bill will be in front of the Scottish parliament. It could become law within a couple of years. To make that happen we need as much public support as possible from like-minded groups and individuals. You can find out more about our campaign here.

Buffer Zones for Abortion Clinics

Women should be able to make decisions about their own bodies without fear of intimidation from faith-based groups. That’s why we support Back Off Scotland’s campaign to introduce buffer zones around abortion clinics, so that religious protestors cannot harass women accessing them. This year, a bill ensuring safe access to abortion services is going to be discussed at Holyrood, and it could become law. We will keep advocating to ensure that the bill is successful, so that Scotland catches up with the rest of the UK, where similar legislation was introduced in October. Find out more here.

Fair School Votes Campaign

Scotland is a more secular country than ever. A YouGov poll undertaken for Humanist Society Scotland last year found that just one in three Scots identifies as religious, and only 18% attend church. But education has not kept up with the pace of change. There are still laws which allow unelected church representatives to have voting rights on local education boards. This makes a real difference to the way schools are run and we want the Scottish Government to scrap the rules. You can find out more about the campaign and sign our petition here.

My Beliefs, My Choice Campaign

In Scotland, children at non-denominational schools (schools that aren’t connected to a particular religion) still have to take part in compulsory “religious observance.” This could mean a representative of a local church preaching to them or leading prayers during assembly. We understand religion is an important topic to cover in professionally-led education but we believe the system relating to religious worship should be “opt in.” At present, to opt out, children need support from their parents. We believe children can make this decision themselves and that denying them that right does not meet the United Nations Conventions of the Rights of the Child, which Scottish law follows. Find out more about our work and campaign on this issue here.

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