Freedom of Association in the UK

Several of us have blogged often here at MOJ about the whole "religious groups at universities with anti-discrimination policies are excluded because of insistence that religion matters for membership" issue.  The same issue, for what it's worth, is front-and-center in the U.K.  Here is a story from the University of Exeter:

Christians at the University of Exeter have vowed to continue their high court action against the student guild in an escalating row over equal opportunities, alleged discrimination and religious freedom on campus.

The case began last year when the Evangelical Christian Union (ECU) had its funds frozen and its guild privileges - such as the use of campus facilities - withdrawn, following a complaint by a student that the union was not inclusive.

The ECU requires its members to declare their faith in Jesus Christ "as their saviour, their Lord and their God", and requires those who want to sit on its committee to sign a doctrinal basis of faith declaring, among other things, that the Bible is the infallible word of God and the "supreme authority in all matters of belief and behaviour". . . .

Tim Diaper, the president of the Christian Union at the University of Essex, said of his student union: "The action of the student union is an attempt to deny us as a body of followers of Christ, the ability to ensure that our leaders must be Christian, living a godly life that is guided by the truths of the Christian faith."

But the debate has not received the universal backing of all who profess a Christian faith.

Peter Ellender, a Christian student at King's College London, fears things have got out of hand. "I'm surprised it's blown up to the point where people are throwing legal threats. That's where you need to stand back and say: 'Hold on, I think we're being a bit silly here. Isn't there a way this can be sorted out through rational dialogue?' ". . .