Unpublished letter.....

Looks as if my local rag didn't have the courage to print this....

Dear Sir,

The progress made with regard to medical research has radically transformed the lives of many people, for example , beneficiaries of transplant surgery or IVF treatment.

Stem cell research offers the possibility of relief from debilitating conditions such as cystic fibrosis and Alzheimer's disease. It is early days, but at one time, the aforementioned technology was also in its infancy.

Imagine,then, if those possibilities had been snuffed out by the attempts of a minority religious group to impose their view upon others. Not only expecting those of the same religion not to partake in these benefits, but preventing others from doing the same.

This is exactly what is happening now. As ever, we hear threats from Catholic bishops, obscure backbench MP's passed over for promotion, and others whose aim appears to be to create some sort of theocracy.

It is vital that this important research goes ahead and that those who would believe that to prevent it is any sort of 'moral' stance be firmly defeated. And given that these people are either outside politics, in the case of Bishops, or elected to represent their party, not their church, can I suggest that they exercise their 'conscience' by starting their own Vaticanist party? That way, those of us who have strong disagreement with Catholic beliefs in these areas will know exactly who not to vote for at the next election.