Author: parliamentaryunit

Bishop of Durham asks about cap on social security benefits

The Bishop of Durham received the following written answers on 16th June 2023:

The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government, whether they intend to abolish the benefit cap following their research which found that only five per cent of affected households moved into work as a result of it.

Viscount Younger of Leckie (Con): The benefit cap continues to provide a work incentive and fairness for hard-working taxpaying households, whilst providing a reasonable safety net of support for the most vulnerable. The Government firmly believes that where possible it is in the best interests of children to be in working households and the benefit cap provides a clear incentive to move into work.

Continue reading “Bishop of Durham asks about cap on social security benefits”

Bishop of St Albans asks about exemptions from ban on sale of horticultural peat

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 16th June 2023:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what exemptions will there be to the general ban on the sale of peat and peat-containing products in the retail horticultural sector from 2024.

Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about exemptions from ban on sale of horticultural peat”

Church Commissioner Questions: choirs, clergy, rural parishes, families

On 15th June 2023 MPs put questions to Andrew Selous MP, Second Church Estates Commissioner, in the House of Commons:

Church Choirs: Engagement with Local Schools

Sir Desmond Swayne (New Forest West) (Con): What steps the Church of England is taking to encourage church choirs to engage with local schools. (905370)

The Second Church Estates Commissioner (Andrew Selous): The Church of England has enthusiastically supported the Government’s Sing Up programme, encouraging local music hubs to partner with churches, and enabling the use of skills and knowledge that schools would otherwise have to buy in. I am sure that my right hon. Friend, as a strong supporter of singing in church, will very much approve.

Continue reading “Church Commissioner Questions: choirs, clergy, rural parishes, families”

Illegal Migration Bill: Bishop of Durham supports Archbishop of Canterbury’s amendment on international refugee strategy

During a debate on committee amendments to the Illegal Migration Bill on 14th June 2023, the Bishop of Durham spoke in support of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s amendment to establish a long term strategy on tackling global refugee crises:

The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, the most reverend Primate might be nervous—he did not know I was going to stand up and he has no clue about what I will say. But I will start by saying I fully support his amendment. I will ask the Minister about the Global Compact on Refugees. The UN has been seeking to develop a global strategy on refugees for a number of years, and it was my privilege to join the Home Office team dealing with the Syrian refugee crisis in Geneva in 2018, at its request. It asked me to make an address.

Continue reading “Illegal Migration Bill: Bishop of Durham supports Archbishop of Canterbury’s amendment on international refugee strategy”

Illegal Migration Bill: Archbishop of Canterbury tables amendment requiring government collaboration strategy to tackle global refugee crisis

On 14th June 2023, the House of Lords debated committee amendments to the Illegal Migration Bill. The Archbishop of Canterbury tabled an amendment that would insert a new clause requiring the Secretary of State to have a ten year strategy for collaborating internationally to tackle refugee crises driving people to enter the UK as refugees:

The Lord Archbishop of Canterbury: My Lords, I hope this section may be a bit shorter. As the noble Lord, Lord Deben, already knows, because he just said it, I am rising to introduce Amendment 139D tabled in my name and Amendment 144B, which is consequential to it. I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Kennedy of The Shaws, and the noble Lords, Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth and Lord Blunkett, for co-signing it. I have had letters of apology from the noble Baroness, Lady Kennedy, and the noble Lord, Lord Blunkett, who are not able to be here for very good and sufficient reasons.

I particularly appreciate when we come to this that the Government are taking action—I am not suggesting for a moment that they are not. The Chişinău statement made in Moldova recently by the Prime Minister was striking, as were the recent raids by the National Crime Agency in tackling criminals involved in this area.

Continue reading “Illegal Migration Bill: Archbishop of Canterbury tables amendment requiring government collaboration strategy to tackle global refugee crisis”

Illegal Migration Bill: Archbishop of Canterbury tables amendments on strategy to tackle human trafficking

During a committee debate on 14th June 2023, the Archbishop of Canterbury tabled two amendments to the Illegal Migration Bill. The first amendment would insert a new clause to the bill requiring the Secretary of State to have a ten year strategy for collaborating internationally to tackle human trafficking into the UK. The Archbishop also spoke in favour of a supplementary amendment, 144A:

The Lord Archbishop of Canterbury: My Lords, I introduce Amendment 139C, tabled in my name, and Amendment 144A, which is consequential to it. I thank the noble Lords, Lord Blunkett, Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate and Lord Hunt of Kings Heath, for co-signing it.

The amendment requires the Secretary of State to prepare a 10-year strategy for tackling human trafficking, in collaboration with international partners on this issue. A statement of policies for implementing the strategy must be presented to Parliament within a year of the Bill becoming law and every following year. Each time that a statement is made, an opportunity must be given for both Houses to debate and vote on it via a Motion for resolution.

The amendment, and my second amendment, relating to a 10-year strategy for an international refugee policy, are far from wrecking or negative amendments but seek to improve the Bill, as is our duty and right in this House. As I said at Second Reading, we need a Bill to reform migration and we need to stop the boats, but this Bill does not contain within it a sense of the long- term and global nature of the challenges that we face. To deal with global challenges, we need to engage in international collaboration towards global solutions.

Continue reading “Illegal Migration Bill: Archbishop of Canterbury tables amendments on strategy to tackle human trafficking”

Illegal Migration Bill: Bishop of Durham supports amendment in the name of the Bishop of London to protect victims of trafficking, and tables amendment on conditions in immigration detention centres

On 14th June 2023, the House of Lords debated amendments to the Illegal Migration Bill in Committee. The Bishop of Durham spoke in support of an amendment tabled by Lord Alton of Liverpool and in the name of the Bishop of London and other peers. The amendment “would prevent immigration data being shared for the purposes of section 2(1) about a victim or witness of crime who reports an offence. This is to ensure victims are able to approach the authorities for assistance without fear of removal under section 2(1) as a result of that contact or resultant data sharing with immigration enforcement.”

The Bishop of Durham also spoke to his amendment 139B during the same speech, an amendment which “would give the Secretary of State a statutory duty to implement all ‘recommendations of the Chief Inspector of Prisons in relation to immigration detention’ centres within six months, strengthening the independent external monitoring role of the chief inspector.”

The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, I will speak first to Amendment 139A, to which my right reverend friend the Bishop of London has added her name, and then I will turn to Amendment 139B in my name. I remind the Committee of my interests as laid out regarding RAMP and Reset.

As we have heard, Amendment 139A would prevent data about a victim of or a witness to a crime being automatically shared for the purpose of immigration enforcement. My right reverend friend the Bishop of London sponsored a similar amendment during the passage of the Domestic Abuse Act, and this issue remains hugely important.

Imkaan reports that more than 90% of abused women with insecure immigration status had their abusers use the threat of their removal from the UK to dissuade them from reporting their abuse. It is deeply disturbing that any person would be deterred from reporting a crime that they have been subjected to or have witnessed because they believe that their data will be passed on to immigration officials for the purposes of immigration control. This is especially pertinent for a domestic abuse victim, a modern slavery victim, someone who has been trafficked or someone who has been subject to violence.

Continue reading “Illegal Migration Bill: Bishop of Durham supports amendment in the name of the Bishop of London to protect victims of trafficking, and tables amendment on conditions in immigration detention centres”

Illegal Migration Bill: Bishop of Durham advocates for right to work for those seeking asylum

During a debate on the Illegal Migration Bill on 14th June 2023, the Bishop of Durham spoke in support of an amendment tabled by Baroness Ludford and in the name of the Bishop of Chelmsford, which “would require the Secretary of State to make regulations enabling asylum seekers to work once they have been waiting for a decision on their claim for 3 months or more.”

The Bishop also raised a point of clarification to Baroness Stowell of Beeston regarding people out of work and claiming benefits:

The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, I support Amendment 133 in the name of the noble Baroness, Lady Ludford. My right reverend friend the Bishop of Chelmsford has added her name to it. She regrets that she cannot be here today; she is actually working with the Woolf Institute’s independent commission on refugee integration. I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Ludford, and other noble Lords who have eloquently made the case for the amendment already.

As it stands, the Bill makes the case for a right to work for some asylum seekers more important than ever. Of course, it is a theme that has come up already. There is little prospect of potential removals being able to keep pace with the large population of asylum seekers who will be deemed inadmissible in the future, and currently we have a huge backlog. We risk the creation of a permanent underclass. Apart from the deleterious effects, that drives some of those people into the grey and black economies because they are not allowed to work openly.

Continue reading “Illegal Migration Bill: Bishop of Durham advocates for right to work for those seeking asylum”

Illegal Migration Bill: Bishop of Durham supports amendments focused on transparency

On 14th June 2023, during a committee debate on the Illegal Migration Bill, the Bishop of Durham spoke in support of a number of amendments designed to ensure transparency of reporting regarding the success of the bill:

The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, the Minister ought to welcome Amendments 132, 134 and 135, because they simply ask for transparency of reporting back on the success of the Bill. The introduction says:

“The purpose of this Act is to prevent and deter unlawful migration, and in particular migration by unsafe and illegal routes”.

Continue reading “Illegal Migration Bill: Bishop of Durham supports amendments focused on transparency”

Bishop of Durham asks about food aid to Ethiopia

The Bishop of Durham asked a question on diversion of food aid and use of international organisations to deliver aid during a debate on protecting the integrity of UK food aid to Ethiopia on 14th June 2023:

The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, it happens time and again that Governments start diverting food aid and other aid away from the people who need it on the ground, and time and again we have learned that international organisations such as Christian Aid and the Red Cross, and local faith communities from all faiths, are often the very best at delivering aid and making sure it gets to the people most in need. Can the Minister tell us what is being done to try to get around the Ethiopian Government and use those organisations?

Continue reading “Bishop of Durham asks about food aid to Ethiopia”