David Smyth
David Smyth is head of Northern Ireland and coordinates the Public Leader: Northern Ireland course. He is a former solicitor and represents the Evangelical Alliance on a range of government, civic and charitable forums. He serves in the space where faith, law, politics and culture intersect.
Ashers bakery case is going to European Court of Human Rights
21 August 2019Mr Lee ordered a cake with the slogan ‘support gay marriage’ from a bakery owned by a Christian family in 2014. The bakery initially accepted and then declined the order to make the cake. Mr Lee, backed by the Equality Commission in Northern Ireland, sued the bakery for damages for alleged discrimination on the grounds of his sexual orientation, political opinion and the religious beliefs of the bakery owners. Mr Lee won his case at first instance at Belfast County Court on all three grounds in…
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A diplomatic incident
11 July 2019US President Donald Trump called the British ambassador to the US, Sir Kim Darroch, a “pompous fool” and “a very stupid guy” on Twitter. This followed the leaked publication of sensitive emails which Sir Darroch had sent back to the British government in which he called President Trump “insecure” and described his administration as “inept” and “dysfunctional”. The ambassador quickly became the story as Trump said that his administration would no longer work with him while the British government…
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A right royal birth
9 May 2019Congratulations came in from Hollywood A-listers, the Obamas and people adorning Union Jack jumpsuits as they lined the streets in a show of support. The birth also prompted Prince William to welcome Harry and Meghan to the 'sleep deprivation society’. As a fellow member of this esteemed society, I’d also like to take this opportunity to extend a warm welcome. Babies change everything. Feeding, winding, changing nappies, dressing, repeat. Caring for a newborn baby is a practical crash course…
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Fyre Festival: The boundaries of the impossible
31 January 2019The phrase ‘the boundaries of the impossible’ was part of the PR campaign for what has been dubbed the “the greatest party that never happened”. The Fyre Festival happened, or didn’t, back in April 2017 and is back in the news again this week, following the release of a new documentary on Netflix. The idea was simple: a luxury music festival on the beautiful Exuma islands. The promotional video featured private jets, yachts and lots of beautiful people. International models including Bella…
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Christmas: Presence, power, purpose and public policy
19 December 2018As public policy officer at the Evangelical Alliance Northern Ireland, I represent the views of many Christians generally and our members more specifically to government and the media. The everyday currency in public affairs and ‘lobbying’ is influence, power and spin. I’ve observed that it’s all too easy to get drawn into the norms and systems of public affairs, or any given culture, for that matter, and as Christians we have not always navigated this space well. So, how does the incarnation…
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Be reconciled
20 November 2018Imagine a violent guerrilla war breaks out in the UK from city tower blocks to quaint country villages. Your ‘enemies’ are indistinguishable in a crowd, trust fades and communities polarise. Neighbours and work colleagues are mentally re-categorised by their perceived allegiances. The conflict dominates the political and media discourse for a generation. Meantime, most people are just trying to work and raise their family, helplessly caught between domesticity and a terrible chaos. This lasts…
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Ashers Bakery – when the icing sugar has settled
25 October 2018On Wednesday, 10 October the Supreme Court in London delivered judgment in the now famous Ashers bakery case. It is the latest and perhaps final twist in the case, which began four-and-a-half years ago when a man walked into Daniel and Amy McArthur’s bakery and asked for a cake with the message “support gay marriage” iced on top. The Christian owners initially accepted the order but then declined, citing conflict with their religious beliefs. The customer, Gareth Lee, who is gay, felt that he…
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Ford and Kavanaugh hearing: a Supreme Court injustice?
28 September 2018In the last 24 hours university professor Dr Christine Blasey Ford and Judge Brett Kavanaugh have both appeared before a US Senate Committee. Dr Ford alleges that Judge Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her at a party in 1982. Judge Kavanaugh rejects the allegations and claims no such encounter ever occurred. Both gave emotional testimonies to the Senate, which were difficult and uncomfortable to watch. Judge Kavanaugh is President Trump’s nominee for the vacant spot on the bench of the US Supreme…
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Brexit and 'the Irish question'
20 September 2018After March 2019, the invisible international border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland becomes the land border between the EU and the UK. The issue cannot simply be resolved between the Irish and British governments – the border no longer divides one country from another, but one country from 27 seven others. The border winds its way for more than 300 miles, dividing farms and streams, fields and country roads. More than 30,000 people cross the border every day for work, and…
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Risk and relationship: partnering up with the Human Rights Commission in Northern Ireland
19 April 2018Protecting the right to freedom of conscience, thought and religion goes right to the heart of the kind of society that we all want to live in. That is the message from the launch of a joint project by the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and the Evangelical Alliance Northern Ireland. The project, an animation opening up the conversation about how human rights and freedom of religion interact, is part of a series covering a number of human rights and will likely be used in educational…
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