Catholic teacher sacked after telling pupils she opposes abortion

A Catholic teacher has claimed that she was sacked after telling pupils she was opposed to abortion.

A Catholic teacher has claimed that she was sacked after telling pupils she was opposed to abortion. Sarah Morse, an American-born history teacher in Angus, said she was fired hours after telling her teenage pupils that she was against the procedure because of her religious beliefs. The 66-year-old claimed she made the comment after her students asked her opinions on abortion, transgender issues and Donald Trump, as part of a discussion about life in the US.

She said that by the end of the same day she had been ordered to leave the school with immediate effect because she had "talked about religion and abortion" in the classroom. Ms Morse is taking the school, run by Angus council, to an employment tribunal, citing discrimination. The anti-abortion group backing her claim argues that UK government guidelines on impartiality do not prohibit the mention of legally protected beliefs as long as there is no attempt to persuade.

But the guidelines don't automatically apply in Scotland because education is a devolved matter. A spokesman for Angus council said: "This matter is the subject of ongoing legal proceedings and therefore it would be inappropriate for us to comment." 'I am a faithful Roman Catholic' The alleged exchange at the centre of the dispute took place on Nov 19 last year at Arbroath High School in Angus.

Ms Morse said she was teaching history to a National Five (the Scottish equivalent of GCSE) class and had left her pupils, aged between 14 and 15, a worksheet to complete on the rise of Adolf Hitler. She said that before the students started work on the task, they asked her questions about aspects of life in the US – including the matter of abortion. When asked for her opinion on the issue, Ms Morse claimed that she responded: "I am a faithful Roman Catholic and I am against it."

When another student asked how this would apply to a rape victim who was pregnant, she said she set out her belief that the child should not be punished but realised that a lot of people would disagree with her, and that it was reasonable to hold an opposing view. She said that, in hindsight, she felt the teenagers were pushing her to make controversial statements, but that at the time she took their curiosity seriously. The teacher claimed that at the end of the day, she received an email from a member of senior staff asking her to come to her office.

"I was summarily dismissed," she told the Sunday Times, because she had "talked about religion and abortion". "I was not offered any sort of right of reply, asked for my account of what happened or how my legally protected beliefs were raised in the context of a history class and the head teacher wouldn't even see me," she added. She insisted that she did not attempt to persuade her students to adopt her position.

Ms Morse, who grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, said: "To be 'cancelled' and lose my livelihood because of my religious identity is a terrifying precedent for the teaching profession in Scotland." She added: "I will not teach anywhere in this country ever again. It's been an absolute nightmare.

"I have never felt discriminated against in Canada, in England. It was not a problem. But here I got burnt."

Ms Morse's legal action is being supported by campaigners from the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC). The case is progressing towards an employment tribunal, which is scheduled to take place on Aug 24. Michael Robinson, executive director of SPUC, said: "The dismissal of a teacher for respectfully answering a student's question truthfully according to her conscience is a grave matter.

"Government guidelines on political impartiality in the classroom do not prohibit the mention of a teacher's legally protected beliefs, provided there is no attempt to persuade."