ChristopherWhite.info

That Radio 4 programme Telling Muslim Stories [transcript] that I shamelessly plugged in the previous post made me think about something that’s been irking me for a while now: Religion as an excuse not to do things.
Times deputy editor Ben Preston said that:

I mean only last week I was floating down the news cue for the day and saw a story which came in about whether Muslims were making it more dificult to control superbugs in hospital because devout Muslims don’t like to wash their hands in hospitals with anything that uses alcohol. That’s not a story that would have appeared on anyone’s agenda a year ago.

Doctors wilfully putting patients at risk isn’t newsworthy?

The reasons behind it are irrelevant: if a doctor isn’t willing to follow procedure and is increasing risk to patients he shouldn’t be working in a hospital. That it’s his religion isn’t a good enough excuse. If your religion forbids you from doing your job properly, then don’t take the job.

When I “worked” in the Welsh Assembly I didn’t bother familiarising myself with their equal opps rules. But I did come across the following in my Students’ Union’s constitution the other day, on “indirect discrimination”:

“Indirect discrimination occurs when a requirement or condition is applied to a person and that person is excluded from some benefit or subjected to a detriment because he or she cannot comply with the requirement or condition.”

I imagine it’s much the same everywhere else.

If that requirement is Doing Your Job Properly, then it’s against the rules to refuse to employ somebody who can’t do their job properly if the reason that they can’t do their job properly is their religion.

It’s a bit unfair on secular incompetents.

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I’ve just realised that apart from the first two paragraphs I’ve actually written this story backwards.

UPDATE 1546 11/11:

Though I got a decent mark, demonstrating once again what a hopeless judge I am of my own work.

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The Identity and Passport Service has rather a handy contact form for members of the public to ask questions about the planned ID card scheme (and I do mean scheme).

I used it to submit a query[1] on September 29.

They responded today - to the wrong email address. (The usual .co.uk as opposed to .com thing.)
This is the text of my follow-up query:

You responded to my last enquiry to the wrong email address. If you can’t even get someone’s email address correct when they’ve typed it in a box for you, how do you reasonably expect to be able to run a National Identity Register successfully?

I’m not expecting a response.

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[1] I was wondering whether there’ll be some sort of security procedures put in place to detect fraudulent attempts by an individual to register twice with the same biometrics, and how that will affect those who legitimately need a new identiy (eg people in witness protection schemes, members of the intelligence services). “Special arrangements” will be made, apparently. I bet they work…

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I wrote earlier of the difficulty I was having with my loan application. One of the things I could use for ID was a Tax Code notification letter from the Inland Revenue. I requested one two weeks ago yesterday. It hasn’t yet arrived. The reason? They haven’t sent it. Apparently it’s too complicated to change somebody’s address on a computer and send them a letter at the same time.

I’m so glad I’m going to be claiming back all the tax I’ve paid this year.

/rant

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