The Bishop of Southwark received the following written answers on 22nd November 2021:
The Lord Bishop of Southwark asked Her Majesty’s Government:
- (1) what progress they have made in organising a Ministerial Conference on freedom of religion or belief in July 2022, and (2) what steps they have taken, if any, to involve civil society and faith organisations in the planning and proceedings of this conference.
- what steps they have taken to implement the recommendations of the Bishop of Truro’s Independent Review for the Foreign Secretary of FCO Support for Persecuted Christians, published on 8 July 2019.
- what steps they plan to take to independently review the implementation of the recommendations of the Bishop of Truro’s Independent Review for the Foreign Secretary of FCO Support for Persecuted Christians, published on 8 July 2019.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con): The UK is committed to defending freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all, and promoting respect between different religious and non-religious communities. Promoting the right to FoRB is one of the UK’s longstanding human rights priorities.
The Bishop of Truro’s review provided recommendations for an enhanced Government response to support members of all faiths, beliefs, and those of no religious belief. We are making good progress on implementing all the recommendations, including on the recommendation to review the recommendations independently three years from publication of the report.
Hosting an international Ministerial conference on FoRB in July 2022 will build on this ongoing commitment to promoting FoRB for all. Work to deliver this conference is underway, including early engagement with a range of stakeholders. Civil society, faith and belief actors have a key role to play in championing the right to FoRB – as plans progress, we will widen consultation further with FoRB stakeholders.
The Church of England in Parliament 
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