A Catholic high school teacher has claimed she was sacked after being asked views on religion and abortion. Sarah Morse, a US citizen who lives in Scotland, was allegedly “summarily dismissed” from Arbroath High School after answering direct questions from her students regarding her religious beliefs on abortion and social issues. When asked directly by a student about her view on abortion, she said that she was “a faithful Roman Catholic” and opposed it, stating to her students that it was “fine to disagree”.

On November 19, 2025, she was informed she was being let go immediately, allegedly due to speaking to her students about religion and abortion.

It is alleged that the conversation was initiated by the pupils and moved from cultural differences to broader social and political topics, gun ownership, President Trump, the death of Charlie Kirk and abortion.

Morse alleged: “When I was summoned to the office, I thought it was to go through paperwork and school procedures such as fire drills after accepting an extension to my contract. Instead, I was summarily dismissed by the Deputy Head. 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.”

Morse said she was “completely shocked and appalled” to have been fired for expressing an opinion “held by more than a billion Catholics worldwide.”

“At no time did I attempt to persuade any student to adopt my position. I taught them that it is possible to have hard conversations with respect and that disagreement is a natural part of a free society. To be ‘cancelled’ and lose my livelihood because of my religious identity is a terrifying precedent for the teaching profession in Scotland,” she said.

Angus Council did not respond to a request for comment.

Morse’s legal case against the school is being supported by the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC).

Michael Robinson, executive director of SPUC, alleged: “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. Sarah, a teacher with considerable experience acted as a facilitator of open, respectful dialogue — for which she has been punished with the loss of her care, pay and damage to her reputation. Chillingly, there was even the veiled threat to add this information to Sarah’s record. The implication of this comment, if you go without a fuss, then we won’t record that you are pro-life, which will impact your employment opportunities.”

Robinson claimed the school did not follow due process, with no attempt to ascertain from Morse what had happened.

Robinson said: “This latest incident of trying to silence someone with traditional or religious views is utterly disgraceful and should worry us all. Sarah did nothing wrong, she simply answered questions from a group of young people about her legally protected beliefs. As she said it was normal along with questions about more the trivial aspects of living in the US. Our legal team are now preparing legal action against the school and the local authority for discrimination and Sarah is looking forward to her day in court.”

The employment tribunal is due to take place on August 24 next month.