According to the Mail newspaper, church leaders could protest the payment – currently valued at £115 million – set to be awarded to Persimmon’s chief executive Jeff Fairburn.

The Church of England, along with the Methodist Church, holds shares in the company, which boasts a workforce of 4,500 across 29 regional UK offices.

Both denominations – which boost investment portfolios of £10 billion and £1.3 billion respectively – told the Mail of their dismay at the scale of payments to reward good performance.

The Mail reports that 140 managers at Persimmon are in line to each receive a share of a bonus package currently valued at £800 million. The first instalments of payments were made late last year.

The Church of England voted against the firm’s board over executive pay during last year’s annual shareholder meeting and is considering a second protest vote when shareholders meet in April.

Payments made to the top brass at Persimmon depend on how much each share in the company is worth. Based on the company’s share price on Friday afternoon, Mr Fairburn would receive £115 million.

The Church of England has been keen in recent months to appear ethical in its investment activities. Leaders announced last November that they may pull out of firms which invest in energy-extractive industries.

Premier has contacted Persimmon…

Iran, Elam Ministries told Mohabat News that a growing number of Farsi churches had been closed and Christian converts had been imprisoned for merely praying and worshipping in their own homes.

However, despite the state-sponsored crackdown, the group which “exists to strengthen and expand the Church in the Iran region and beyond”, said the intimidation isn’t stopping people from embracing Christianity.

Elam team member Behrang Masoumi became a Christian after he attended a Christmas gathering at a house church, where he discovered a relative had already secretly converted.

“I was shocked. I was even more shocked to discover that she had been secretly following Jesus for five years… and she had been praying for me all that time,” said Masoumi.

Meanwhile, United Nations human rights experts have issued a statement, urging Iran to ensure “a fair and transparent final hearing” for three Iranian Christians who have been sentenced for “conducting evangelism” and “illegal house church activities,” among other charges.

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Affinity, a fellowship of evangelical churches and individuals, are encouraging Christian organisations to support them and sign a petition to prevent the potential persecution of religion in the future.

Graham Nicholls, the Director of Affinity, told Premier why a law was needed: “There is a clash going on, a cultural clash, a colliding of different rights and responsibilities.

“In that clash, religious freedom in part is being squeezed out by secular freedom, so we think it would be helpful and clarifying if religious rights were somehow enshrined in law.”

Nicholls said that believers do have many legal rights but that there is a danger these can slip away when tested in everyday life.

Explaining that many rights are enshrined in law, Nicholls added: “It’s not clarified what that actually means and how that works out in practice and whether we are free to worship – to read the scripture in public for example – is that a right that we should have? We think it should be and to be able to interpret scripture without government interference.”

Nicholls argued that a law would “save a lot of time wasted on spurious cases of prosecuting Christians on things like people preaching in public”.

When asked if our current freedoms are really in danger currently, he replied: “In practice. Not many of the cases have held against street preachers or against Christian preaching…

Senator Pacquiao’s proposal was met without any opposition and will now be observed annually on the last Monday of January.

The new working holiday will celebrate Christianity and the observance of the teachings of the Bible.

In his explanatory note to the bill, Pacquiao said: “As a predominantly Christian nation and the largest Christian nation in the Asia Pacific, this Act recognises the value of the Holy Bible as the core of Christian faith.”

“Sermons and homilies of Christian churches dwell in the teachings of the Bible. It is the primary source of spiritual manna.

“Bless the Lord O my soul
O my soul
Worship His Holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I’ll worship Your Holy name.” pic.twitter.com/7x6oUMWmch

— Manny Pacquiao (@mannypacquiao) October 26, 2017

“It forms and transforms lives of people from generations to generations. It serves as the foundation of spiritual, moral, and social fibre, which moulds a socially responsible citizenry and strong nation building.”

Approximately four in five Filipinos are Catholics, amounting to around 80 million people.

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The pair will have the eyes of the world on them on 19th May when they tie the knot at St George’s Chapel (pictured below), Windsor Castle.

Kensington Palace has released an update on the big day, which takes place on the same date as the the 2018 FA Cup Final.

Fans of both football and the royals will be relieved to know that the wedding service will begin at midday – meaning that a clash is very unlikely as recent finals have kicked off at 5.30pm.

The palace said the couple are “hugely grateful for the many good wishes they have received since announcing their engagement”, adding: “They are very much looking forward to the day and to being able to share their celebrations with the public.”

Information released included the ceremony time and confirmation that Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby will marry the couple.

The Rt Rev David Conner, Dean of Windsor, will conduct the service at the Castle’s 15th century chapel.

At 1pm, the newlyweds will embark on a carriage procession along a route including Castle Hill, High Street, Sheet Street, Kings Road, Albert Road, Long Walk and finally Windsor Castle.

“They hope this short journey will provide an opportunity for more people to come together around Windsor and to enjoy the atmosphere of this special day,” the palace said.

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