Understanding how unelected elites, including the CofE establishment, are blocking reform. Opinion piece Ilford Recorder Feb 2026
Two different news stories recently caught my eye: Research showing the steady decline of Christianity, and the democratic travesty that is our House of Lords. Both underline the crying need for radical reforms.
Figures published in January debunk the claim made last year of an uptick in Church attendance. The new figures are based on British Social Attitude Survey polling, the gold standard for such analysis. They tally with figures provided by The Church of England and the Catholic Church. They contradict the claim made last year based on polling by the Bible Society.
This matters because so many of our institutions are shaped around the myth that this is a ‘Christian’ country. In fact, those with Christian faith are a dwindling minority. There is no justification in 2026, for example, for the law which requires a daily act of Christian Worship in state schools. And there is no justification for 26 Church of England Bishops being automatically entitled to sit in the Upper Chamber and decide on our laws.
The debacle surrounding (now ex-Lord) Mandelson is one example of how neither fitness, nor ability, let alone accountability, need play any part in deciding who enjoys the privileges that come with a peerage. Mandelson’s case, and that of other venal peers, sickens many. But for organised Humanists it has been at least as galling to witness an unelected elite deliberately obstructing the assisted dying bill through underhand tactics.
The elected House of Commons voted in favour of the bill. Polling shows that an overwhelming majority of the electorate support reform Yet a group of peers, all unelected, have been determined to see it fail. An unprecedented number of amendments have been submitted in the knowledge that this will result in the Bill being ‘talked out’ through lack of time. Opposition to the bill isn’t exclusively religious. However, the Bishops have been at the forefront of seeking to thwart our freedom of choice on this deeply personal issue.
The Bishop of Newcastle is on the Lords’ committee scrutinising the bill. She receives a £52000 stipend and free accommodation from the CofE. They organise opposition to the Bill. Yet her religious status exempts her from declaring a conflict of interest normally required of a paid lobbyist.
It is unacceptable for unelected elites to rule our lives, whether they owe their privilege to wealth, influence, or religion.
Paul Kaufman
Chairperson, East London Humanists
