Mags GarganTen questions based on Catholic Social Teaching for Catholics to ask candidates standing in the Assembly elections:
- What will you do to address the unacceptable levels of childhood poverty in Northern Ireland and the widening gap between rich and poor?
- What will you do to uphold the right to life of unborn children and adults with severe life-limiting disabilities, as well as children conceived through sexual crime, if the next Assembly seeks to introduce legislation that removes the fundamental right to life from them?
- Do you support abortion, the direct and intentional taking of an innocent human life in any circumstances?
- What will you do to protect and support family and marriage and in particular the natural institution of marriage between one man and one woman as the fundamental building block of society?
- Will you support the right of religious organisations to provide services in a manner consistent with their religious ethos and beliefs?
- Will you support the right of parents to have Catholic schools as part of a diverse system of educational provision, based on parental choice?
- What will you do to highlight the persecution of Christians and other persecuted groups across the world?
- What will you do to address human trafficking in Northern Ireland and to help improve services for refugees, asylum seekers and the homeless?
- What will you do to help achieve those UN Sustainable Development goals that are ethically consistent and ensure proper care and respect for the natural environment?
- What will you do to create a more constructive and inclusive political culture in the next Assembly, one that gives hope to all in our society for a better future?
Statement by the Catholic bishops in Northern Ireland in advance of the Assembly Election on March 2, 2017.