parliamentaryunit

Bishop of Exeter asks about resolution to doctors’ strikes

The Bishop of Exeter tabled a question on what progress the government had made towards resolving strikes by NHS doctors on 5th July 2023:

The Lord Bishop of Exeter: To ask His Majesty’s Government what progress they have made towards resolving the strikes by doctors in the NHS.

Lord Markham (Con): My Lords, the Government have been clear that we want to resolve the strikes by doctors. We negotiated in good faith with the BMA’s junior doctors committee in May. The Government stand ready to meet junior doctors again if they move from their unreasonable ask of a 35% pay rise this year. We also want to open negotiations with consultants. We encourage unions to come to the negotiating table rather than proceeding with strike action.

Bishop of Ely asks government to engage with Archbishop’s office and church contacts on laws criminalising homosexuality in Uganda

On 5th July 2023, the Bishop of Ely asked that the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office utilise contacts available within the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Office and the wider church to engage with people in Uganda on the country’s recent institution of the death penalty for homosexuality:

The Lord Bishop of Ely: My Lords, I thank the Minister for his reference to the most reverend Primate the Archbishop of Canterbury’s letter to the Archbishop of Uganda, and for hearing us, as Bishops, say how much we deplore what has been decided by the Archbishop of Uganda in support of this ignoble law. In the light of the most reverend Primate the Archbishop’s intervention, and all that has been said about engaging with civil society, will the FCDO engage with the Archbishop’s office and make use of the Church’s contacts to offset some of the very conservative religious engagement from other countries in Uganda and engage with people on the ground in Uganda to seek to change this abhorrent law?

Bishop of St Albans asks about average ambulance response times

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 5th July 2023:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what was the average ambulance response time in (1) NHS Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes Integrated Care Board, and (2) NHS Hertfordshire and West Essex Integrated Care Board, in (a) 2019, (b) 2020, (c) 2021, and (d) 2022.

Lord Markham (Con): Ambulance response times by Integrated Care Board (ICB) area are not centrally collected.

Hansard

Church Commissioners Written Answers: Gender Pay Gap

On 5th July 2023, Andrew Selous MP, representing the Church Commissioners, gave the following written answer to a question from an MP:

Church of England: Equal Pay

Cat Smith MP (Lab, Lancaster and Fleetwood): To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church has taken to close the gender pay gap.

Votes: National Security Bill

On 4th July 2023, the House of Lords debated Commons amendments and reasons for the National Security Bill. A vote was held on an amendment to the bill, in which Bishops took part:

Votes: Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill

On 4th July 2023, the House of Lords debated the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill. Votes were held on amendments to the bill, in which Bishops took part:

Bishop of Sheffield welcomes plans to tackle homelessness

On 4th July 2023, the Bishop of Sheffield tabled a question on government steps to tackle homelessness following the launch of the Prince of Wales’ Homewards initiative:

The Lord Bishop of Sheffield: To ask His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to tackle homelessness following the launch of the Prince of Wales’s Homewards initiative.

Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con): We welcome the Prince of Wales’s Homewards initiative and his interest and support in tackling homelessness. The Government have made the unprecedented commitment to end rough sleeping. In September 2022 we published our cross-government strategy, setting out how we were investing £2 billion over three years to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping.

Bishop of Exeter asks about decision to end direct payments to UK farmers

The Bishop of Exeter asked a question about the impact of the government’s decision to end direct payments to farmers on 4th July 2023, during a debate on government plans to reduce trade barriers to food imports from the EU:

The Lord Bishop of Exeter: My Lords, I wonder what account His Majesty’s Government have taken of the impact of ending their direct payments to English farmers, and whether it has put them at a competitive disadvantage compared to their European counterparts.

Illegal Migration Bill: Bishop of Durham moves amendment to ensure safeguarding of migrant children in local authority care

On 3rd July 2023, during a debate on the Illegal Migration Bill, the Bishop of Durham tabled amendment 89, which would “limit the Secretary of State’s power to transfer a child out of local authority care and into accommodation provided by the Secretary of State, by providing that they may only do so where to do so is necessary to safeguard and promote the welfare of the child.”

The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, I declare my interests as laid out in the register. I will speak to Amendment 89, and I am grateful to my noble friends from differing Benches—the noble Lords, Lord Coaker and Lord German, and the noble Baroness, Lady Helic—for their support. It is a damning indictment that an amendment of this nature is even required, as it proposes such a basic safeguard to ensure the well-being of unaccompanied children. It requires that, if a child is to be transferred from local authority child protection systems, a justification should be provided as to why it is in their best interests to be looked after by the Home Office rather than the local authority.

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: