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Christian doctor targeted by secular campaign secures freedom to pray

No further action will be taken after no evidence was found against Dr Scott

A Christian doctor has been vindicated after a concerted and targeted attack against him by a secularist campaign group was thrown out by the General Medical Council (GMC). The GMC ruled that there was no evidence and that the doctor had done nothing wrong.

The outcome reassures Christian doctors and professionals across the UK and provides guidance on how they can share their faith in the workplace without fear of losing their jobs.

Read coverage in The Sunday Times

Targeted by the National Secular Society

In June 2019, the GMC wrote to Christian GP, Dr Richard Scott, 59, that it had received “some information” from the National Secular Society (NSS) and would begin a fitness to practise investigation in to him.

The NSS, targeting Dr Scott to get him de-registered, had lodged a complaint expressing 'concern' that he was "continuing to pray and promote Christianity during consultations in an attempt to convert patients", and cited an anonymous complainant.

However, after an investigation lasting three months, the GMC concluded that there was no case to answer, stating in a letter to Dr Scott:

“There is no first-hand account or complaint from any patient about Dr Scott’s practice. The NSS sent an anonymous hearsay account about how Dr Scott expressed his religious beliefs to a ‘highly vulnerable’ patient,” and “there is no convincing evidence that Dr Scott imposes his personal religious beliefs upon potentially vulnerable patients.

Watch Dr Richard Scott's reaction to the outcome

They added: “There is no evidence that [Dr Scott] discusses faith in situations where the patient has stated that they do not wish to discuss these matters or that he has continued to discuss faith after a patient has indicated that they do not welcome such a discussion.”

The GMC clarified that Dr Scott’s medical practice “states that the majority of the Partners are Christians and that this faith guides the way in which they view their work.” For the future, the GMC has advised Dr Scott to document any discussions of faith that he has with his patients and that prayer must only be offered within the guidelines of the GMC's explanatory guidance on personal beliefs and medical practice.

Responding to the outcome, Dr Scott, who has been supported by the Christian Legal Centre, said: “This complaint should never have got to this stage. It was clear from the outset that the NSS was targeting not just me and the practice, but also the freedom of Christian professionals across the UK to share their faith in the workplace. The toll placed on my family and me, as a result of one spurious complaint, was totally unnecessary. Yet it is my hope that this outcome will mean other Christian practitioners will not have to go through similar experiences.”

'No evidence'

Please pray for the Bethesda Medical Practice where Dr Scott works

Anti-Christian agenda exposed

Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, commented: “The outcome of this case not only gives reassurance to Christian doctors and professionals across the UK that they can share their faith in the workplace, but also clear guidance on how they can share it without fear of losing their jobs.

“The agenda of the National Secular Society to remove Christian witness from the workplace is clear. Yet this guidance from the GMC should now provide more protection, allowing doctors, like Richard, to get on with their jobs without fear.

“Dr Richard Scott is a brilliant doctor, loved and respected in his community and especially by his patients. It is because of his Christian faith that he is motivated to look after the person well beyond the consulting room.”

Please continue to pray for Richard Scott and our legal team as they help people like him. And give thanks to God for all the prayer and financial support that allows us to seek justice for people like Richard.

Listen to Richard speaking to BBC Radio Kent about his case

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