The United Kingdom elected a latest prime minister in a landslide win for the Labour Party, a big shift of political power after 14 years of Conservative-led government.
Neither party secured nearly all of the country’s evangelical vote, but evangelicals of various affiliations shall be following how the brand new Labour government addresses areas of concern for the church, including the treatment of refugees, the start and end of life, and policies around sexuality and gender.
In the July 4 election, Sir Keir Starmer garnered the second-largest parliamentary victory since World War II, just in need of the margin Tony Blair won by in 1997. Research from our team on the Evangelical Alliance found that 42 percent of evangelical Christians said they might vote Labour while 29 percent would vote Conservative. (The survey was conducted in late 2023 before a latest party, Reform UK, increased in popularity.)
Just over half of evangelicals said they wish to vote for a celebration that represents biblical values, but there is no such thing as a consensus on what party that is likely to be. A major minority in our polling don’t see that as a top issue in determining how they vote—probably because they don’t see any party as offering that option.
When asked whether a commitment on certain issues would increase their likelihood to vote for a celebration, evangelicals wanted parties to guard free speech, stand for global religious freedom, reduce term limits on abortion, oppose assisted suicide, support secure routes for refugees, and promote marriage within the tax system.
The only issue evangelicals were polled on that has had any salience within the UK election is reform of laws that protect single-sex spaces on the idea of biological sex. Many non-Christians have spoken up in regards to the issue, probably most notably Harry Potter writer J. K. Rowling, who was very critical of the incoming governing party’s position on the problem.
The diversity of opinions amongst evangelical Christians implies that no political party stakes a claim to their vote, but it could possibly also mean political issues are viewed as too difficult to discuss in church.
Less than 2 percent of evangelicals we heard from said their church leader had explicitly backed a celebration or candidate, and just one in 7 had witnessed clear support or opposition for particular policies.
The government’s legislative priorities shall be set out within the King’s Speech on July 17, but key policy announcements ahead of that can display its focus within the early months.
Evangelicals shall be paying particular attention to the Labour government’s decisions on how sex and gender are handled at school. Prior to the election, plans were in place to take a more cautious approach and to make sure teachers are in a position to assert that biological sex determines someone’s gender, not being disciplined in the event that they don’t use the gender or pronouns a baby asks to make use of.
A related area where evangelical Christians are prone to challenge the incoming government is over its commitment to introduce a ban on sexuality and gender conversion practices. Previous proposals could significantly affect churches and Christian ministries by restricting their freedom to show and supply pastoral care and prayer.
The latest Labour government immediately scrapped the previous government’s agreement with Rwanda for processing asylum applications, which had been a highly controversial policy in recent months.
The previous government passed quite a few laws to attempt to tighten immigration requirements, and the UK Evangelical Alliance joined with fellow Christian organizations to call for a system—regardless of the level of immigration—that treated people humanely and with the inherent dignity they’ve as people created within the image of God. Critics frightened that too many proposals recommend as an alternative treated them as pawns in a political game.
“The Evangelical Alliance is committed to working with the federal government on restoring hope in our society, strengthening social cohesion, and honoring the dignity and value of each human being,” said Gavin Calver, CEO of the UK Evangelical Alliance. “Our faith is a crucial component of what makes a difference and helps transform lives across the UK.”
Churches were more prone to discuss local social issues resembling poverty or global issues like war and peace, international poverty, or the persecuted church. Though churches are prone to discuss practical look after asylum seekers and refugees, fewer than 1 in 5 heard their church discuss immigration policy.
In UK politics, life issues like abortion and assisted suicide are considered matters of conscience and typically will not be governed by party platform, so members of Parliament (MPs) are free to vote as they need.
Starmer, the brand new prime minister, has indicated that the federal government won’t take a position on any potential latest law on assisted suicide, but he has also pledged parliamentary time to contemplate the matter—so it should likely be a key issue over the subsequent couple of years.
Before the election was announced, the Conservative-majority Parliament was expected to vote on reforms regarding the regulation of abortion; these were abandoned when the election was called but are prone to come back for Parliament to contemplate.
Our survey found that the highest reason motivating how evangelicals vote is the party that helps those most in need.
Though the estimated turnout was the lowest in 20 years, greater than 9 in 10 evangelicals said they planned to vote within the election.
Evangelical Christians shall be seeking to work productively with the brand new government and with individual MPs each nationally and locally. As representatives of specific geographical areas, MPs wish to construct strong links with local groups, and this can be a probability for churches to forge relationships and influence decisions for his or her communities and the country.
“There shall be points within the years ahead where we are going to disagree with the federal government’s direction and can challenge policies and decisions. Any moves that disempower and harm essentially the most vulnerable in society shall be met with a strong response from evangelical Christians across the UK,” Calver said. “Our heart is at all times to serve and advocate for those most in need, and we urge the federal government to do the identical.”
Danny Webster is director of advocacy for the UK’s Evangelical Alliance.
