February 2023 – Page 2 – The Church of England in Parliament

Retained EU Law Bill: Bishop of Leeds speaks on parliamentary sovereignity

The Bishop of Leeds spoke briefly during a debate on the Retained EU Law Bill on 23rd February 2023, highlighting the need for clear definitions of governmental and parliamentary sovereignty:

The Lord Bishop of Leeds: My Lords, the reason these amendments and this debate are important is that one always explores the general by probing the specific to see if it holds water. I wonder if, in that respect, it might be helpful for the Minister and the Committee if he defined in his response parliamentary sovereignty as against executive sovereignty. If we understood that more clearly, we would understand the status and the rationale behind what is proposed in this Bill, which I personally see as unnecessary.

Bishop of Gloucester asks about combatting domestic violence

The Bishop of Gloucester asked a question on the government’s approach to addressing abuse and domestic violence on 23rd February 2023, during a debate on violence against women and girls:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: My Lords, according to the Office for National Statistics, only 18% of domestic abuse victims report to the police. Can the Minister say whether the Government are taking a whole-system approach to tackling and preventing abuse—through the health system, education and better housing and welfare provision? A whole-system approach is needed.

Bishop of Leeds asks about funding for UK academia and sciences

The Bishop of Leeds asked a question on the funding available to UK science following the loss of funding from programmes such as Erasmus and EU Horizon, following a question on the losses from leaving the Horizon programme on 23rd February 2023:

The Lord Bishop of Leeds: My Lords, I am hearing what has been said about the EU not following through on its commitments, but our own Government have not done so. Look at the Erasmus programme. Promises were made that, in the interim, facilities would be put in place and there would be no deficit, but there clearly has been. Can the Minister tell us when the scientific community and academia will have some certainty, which is what they need?

Bishop of St Albans asks about protection for the vulnerable during cold weather

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 23rd February 2023:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what further steps they will be taking to protect vulnerable people during the cold weather.

Lord Callanan (Con): The Government has set up a number of Energy Affordability schemes to support vulnerable people with the cost of their energy bills during the cold weather. The Energy Price Guarantee will save a typical household in Great Britain £900 this Winter. The Energy Bills Support Scheme provided households with £400 non-repayable Government discount paid in instalments to UK households from October 2022 to March 2023. Households using alternative fuels will be also entitled to a £200 Alternative Fuel Payment.

Bishop of St Albans asks about government efforts to reduce knife crime

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 23rd February 2023:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to reduce incidences of knife crime against shop workers.

Lord Sharpe of Epsom (Con): The Home Office has provided £130m this financial year (22/23) to tackle and drive down serious violence, including funding for Violence Reduction Units (VRUs) and the Home Office ‘Grip’ programme.

We have introduced legislation to tackle these crimes. Serious Violence Reduction Orders (SVROs) are new court orders introduced via the Police Crime Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 that will give the police the power to stop and search adults already convicted of knife or offensive weapons offences. We will pilot SVROs in four police force areas to build an understanding of the impact and effectiveness of the new orders before making a decision on whether we should introduce them nationally.

Bishop of Exeter asks about deaths attributed to antibiotic-resistant infections

The Bishop of Exeter received the following written answer on 23rd February 2023:

The Lord Bishop of Exeter asked His Majesty’s Government how many deaths were attributed to antimicrobial resistance in England in (1) 2017, (2) 2018, (3) 2019, (4) 2020, and (5) 2021.

Lord Markham (Con): The UK Health Security Agency runs national surveillance programmes to collect and analyse data on antimicrobial use and antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Data is reported in the annual English surveillance programme for antimicrobial utilisation and resistance report.

Levelling up and Regeneration Bill: Bishop of Leeds speaks in support of amendment on health disparities

On Wednesday 22nd February 2023, the House of Lords debated the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill in the second day of committee. The Bishop of Leeds spoke in the debate, supporting amendments by the Bishop of London and other peers relating to health disparities:

The Lord Bishop of Leeds: My Lords, at Second Reading, I remember applauding, broadly speaking, the ambitions of the White Paper. However, I share the concerns of the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of London, who of course brings to this much more experience than I do.

I am pleased that, already, the noble Baroness, Lady Hayman, has alluded to the interconnectivity of all these different missions; they cannot be seen in silos or in isolation. For example, if you have children who are turning up at school unfed or living in poor housing, you can try teaching them what you will but it may not be very successful, and that has an impact not only on individuals but on communities and their flourishing.

Church Commissioners Written Answers: LGBTQ+ People

Andrew Selous MP, representing the Church Commissioners, gave the following written answer to a question from an MP on 22nd February 2023:

Elliot Colburn MP (Con): To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, in the context of the Church of England’s Living in Love and Faith process and the forthcoming General Synod, what assessment the Commissioners have made of the potential impact of the Church of England’s exemptions from the Equality Act 2010 on LGBT+ people.

Andrew Selous MP (Con): The National Church Institutions have made no such assessment. The exceptions in the Equality Act are for all religious organisations rather than for the Church of England specifically. It is unlikely that any of the exceptions will be engaged by Living in Love and Faith and therefore no assessment has been carried out.

Hansard

Bishop of Durham asks about emergency resettlement scheme

The Bishop of Durham received the following written answer on 22nd February 2022:

The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government what plans they have to trial an Emergency Resettlement Mechanism that is wider than existing schemes as originally proposed in the New Plan for Immigration, published on 24 March 2021.

Lord Murray of Blidworth: An Emergency Resettlement Mechanism would allow the government to provide urgent protection in exceptional circumstances to refugees referred by UNHCR as being in need of rapid emergency resettlement. The UK already works alongside the UNHCR to resettle refugees through its existing resettlement schemes; these include the UK Resettlement Scheme (UKRS), Community Sponsorship, the Mandate Resettlement Scheme, and the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS).

Bishop of St Albans asks about sustainability targets for oil companies

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 22nd February 2023:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government whether they have held any discussions with BP following reports that the company will fail to meet its climate targets; and what steps they are taking to promote sustainability in oil companies.

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