Since the election of Colin Hall for Mayor of Leicester on the 27th May 2010, tension has escalated within the local church and beyond, due to the policies he has enforced which have deeply offended not only the Christians of Leicester but also Christians nationwide.
Council members who, since 1997, have prayed before meetings, have found they are no longer allowed to do so after Councillor Hall deemed the routine to be an ‘outdated, unnecessary and intrusive practice’. He told the Telegraph “I personally consider that religion, in whatever shape or form, has no role to play at all in the conduct of council business.” He justified his actions by telling the Daily Mail that ‘the majority of council members in Leicester do not regularly attend any particular faith service.’ Similar issues have stirred tension in other councils such as Enfield Council in North London where Christian prayers have recently been replaced with poetry readings.
According to the 2001 census, Leicester is the most culturally and religiously diverse town in the UK after London, with over 36% of residents from ethnic minorities. Hall also gained support from Allan Hayes, the mayor's humanist chaplain and president of the Leicester Secularist society, who told the Telegraph 'I think it's a good move because saying Christian prayers pick out one particular stance of people in the city. It's rather divisive, in my view.'
Andrea Minichiello Williams, Director of Christian Concern For Our Nation said ‘This is yet another example of Christian practices being eroded in public life in our nation. It is vital for Christians to be involved in public life and model how important Christian values and practices are.’