By Gordon Brown

As the son of a Church of Scotland minister of more than four decades, I was fortunate to have imbibed the scriptures from an early age. The lessons they taught me, that a life of joy and fulfilment could be lived in the service of others; and that to be tested by adversity is not a fate to be feared but a challenge to be overcome, have always remained with me.
As a son and now a father, I retained my belief in the Parable of the Talents; that everyone has a talent;, that everyone should have the chance to develop it, and everyone should be challenged to bridge that gap between what they are and what they have it in themselves to become.
That’s why I believe so passionately in the power of opportunity to change lives. It’s what drives my belief that we should do all we can, as individuals, families, communities and as a Government, to ensure that every single person has a chance to fulfil their unique potential. In practical terms, that has meant action to lift people out of poverty, to secure record results in schools, and to expand higher education so we now have more students than ever.
The financial crisis was perhaps the toughest test yet of whether we truly believed that everybody’s potential was worth investing in. During the most tumultuous days of the recession, I kept returning to something I first learned in my father’s church as a child. In this most modern of crises I was drawn to the most ancient of truths; wherever there is hardship, wherever there is suffering, people of good conscience cannot pass by on the other side. And that is why we tool action to protect people’s homes and jobs and savings.
People often ask me if faith should somehow be divorced from public life. I have always rejected that idea. The public square is more than a marketplace – our common realm is not and cannot be stripped of values, can never be merely a place for calculation, contract and exchange. The Christian contribution to British politics, and to the Labour Party in particular, is immense.
The Christian churches are always ready to remind us of our responsibilities to what the Bible calls “the least of these” on issues from debt cancellation to child poverty to the good stewardship of the Earth. Each of these great campaigns mounted by the churches is rooted in the idea that we are each our brother’s or sister’s keeper. It is that ideal which inspired the Labour Government as we trebled aid and cancelled debt, lifted half a million children out of poverty and signed the world’s first ever Climate Change Act.
There are also crucial issues that go to the heart of religious and ethical beliefs that politicians cannot ignore. The debate over assisted suicide is one of those. We have all heard about complex and distressing individual cases and there is no straightforward answer.
My view is that people are drawn to support the right to assisted suicide because of fears about how they will be cared for when they are dying. They ask themselves: will I suffer pain? Will I lose my dignity and my individuality?
I want us to look more closely at such fears and what can be done to address them. The rise of the speciality of palliative care has helped many people. Keir Starmer, the Director of Public Prosecutions, has given us new guidance on the factors to be considered in prosecuting cases of assisted suicide.
I personally would be uncomfortable with a change in the law that fundamentally changes attitudes to death. There always remain the risk of pressures – however subtle – on the frail and the vulnerable, who may feel their existences burdensome to others, cannot ever be entirely excluded.
We should use the laws we have well and find ways to support the skills and loving care of people, often motivated by their faith, who do such tremendous work in our hospices.
So the lessons of the gospels need not be kept separate from political life. If Christians engage with politics, we can together build a better society.