Labour leader Ed Miliband visited a church in London on Sunday in an attempt to woo Christian voters ahead of the general election on 7th May.
Although a professed atheist, Mr Miliband joined the congregation at Praise House in Croydon for their service and then took questions.
Workplace concerns
During his answers, he touched on the right of Christians to manifest their faith in the workplace.
In light of several cases where Christians have been disciplined for talking about their faith at work, one questioner asked Mr Miliband if he would enact legislation to protect religious expression.
The Labour leader stopped short of making a specific commitment, saying rather that it was something “we should look at”, adding “Religious freedom is incredibly important and that’s something we prize in our country.”
“We must do everything we can to make sure that religious freedom is protected and I am very clear about that.
“The articulation of people’s Christian faith is a thing that they should be, absolutely, allowed to do.”
He also made mention of the persecution of Christians around the world, before commenting: “So absolutely we should look at how we protect the freedom of expression that people have, I think it is an important part of religious freedom both here and around the world.”
Community
As part of a short address, Mr Miliband praised the work of churches in building community cohesion, particularly after the London riots in 2011.
When questioned about the hostility that Christian groups often face when conducting community projects on behalf of local councils, he responded: “I think we’ve got to try and get around that in local authorities or elsewhere.
“And we’ve got to take people at face value, if you like, and say what is it you are trying to do and can you achieve change for the community, can you make a difference and if you can you should be able to do it?
“We shouldn’t worry about people’s motivations in how they want to do that.”
Schools
Mr Miliband also faced questions about faith schools. A Roman Catholic priest pressed him on what commitment he would make to working with faith schools, to which he replied: “The answer is yes, definitely… we want good education for people, that’s the bottom line and I know of so many faith schools that provide it I absolutely can reassure you on that one.”
Bishop Mark Nicholson, leader of Acts Christian Church in Thornton Heath, was present at the event and commented: “He embraced us today – it is the same language of change to the Muslims, to the Christians, to the faith communities.”
Mr Miliband’s visit to Praise House in Croydon followed Prime Minister David Cameron’s appearance last week at Festival of Life, a large Christian festival in London.
‘Listening’
Andrea Williams, chief executive of Christian Concern, commented: “Whilst his answers lacked any specific commitments, Mr Miliband has at least made an effort to address the concerns of Christians. Christian voters need to hear from party leaders that their concerns are being taken seriously. The freedom of Christians to discuss their faith at work is a key issue and Mr Miliband addressed that concern.
“It is now over to David Cameron, who has yet to comment on the freedom of Christians in this country. Under his watch, more Christians have been disciplined or dismissed form their jobs for bringing their faith into the workplace.
“He has repeatedly made generic comments about Britain being a ‘Christian country’, yet he has failed to take a single practical step to address the plight of Christians in this country.
“In fact some of his policies, such as the introduction of same-sex ‘marriage’, have actively undermined the Christian foundations of our nation.
“Now is the time for Mr Cameron to show that he is prepared to do more than simply pay lip-service to Christians.
“Christian voters are listening, and they are waiting to hear what Mr Cameron has to say.”
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