Author: parliamentaryunit

Bishop of Leeds asks about clergy responses to investigation into gatherings in Downing Street during COVID-19 restrictions

On 11th January 2022, during a debate on events that took place in Downing Street during a time when COVID-19 restrictions were in place, the Bishop of Leeds asked how the government would advise Bishops to respond to members of the clergy who had obeyed regulations in spite of pastoral reasons, in light of the allegations:

The Lord Bishop of Leeds: My Lords, could the Minister advise those of us on these Benches how we should respond to clergy, who took an enormous personal toll in having to deal with families who were not able to attend funerals or to be with their loved ones? They were very tempted to break the rules for strong pastoral reasons but did not, and they are now faced with this.

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Bishop of Leeds asks about conflict in Kazakhstan

On 11th January 2022, The Bishop of Leeds asked a question on the impact of violence in Kazakhstan on the wider region around the country:

The Lord Bishop of Leeds: My Lords, have Her Majesty’s Government made any assessment of the impact of this instability on the wider region, particularly given Kazakhstan’s proximity to China, its very strong cultural relationships with Turkey, and its importance for the stability of the southern republics and those nations that lie below it?

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Bishop of Durham tables question on support for larger families

The Bishop of Durham asked a question on adequacy of support offered to larger families by the Department for Work and Pensions on 11th January 2022:

The Lord Bishop of Durham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the adequacy of support offered by the Department for Work and Pensions to larger families.

Baroness Stedman-Scott (Con, DWP): No assessment has been made as every household has different requirements. While there is no objective way of deciding what an adequate level of support should be, the department will spend more than £110 billion this year—4.8% of GDP—on working-age benefits. Additionally, the Government offer a wide range of support to families with children depending on their circumstances, including free school meals, childcare, Healthy Start vouchers and the household support fund.

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Health & Care Bill: Bishop of London supports greater advocacy for patients

On 11th January 2022, the House of Lords debated the Health & Care Bill in committee. The Bishop of London spoke in the debate, supporting stronger voices for patients in the NHS, particularly in governing boards:

The Lord Bishop of London: My Lords, I declare my background as a former government Chief Nursing Officer and non-executive director of a number of healthcare trusts. I was not going to speak, but I have listened to noble Lords’ comments today and I come down with the noble Baroness, Lady Harding, in saying that we should not stipulate what skills are required of a board too tightly. What is in front of organisations changes over time, so the chair needs to be empowered to change. However, one caveat is that it would be wise to consider having somebody on the board with a background in patients. I speak from experience as a clinical professional: we can too easily forget the patient and to see things through their eyes. Far too often, we see things through the eyes of the clinician, which is not always in the best interest of patients.

Hansard

Votes: Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill

On 10th January 2022, the House of Lords debated the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill in the Report stage. Votes were held on amendments to the Bill, in which Bishops took part.

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Bishop of Leeds asks about recent statements on the rule of law by the UK

Following a government statement on Russian aggression towards Ukraine on 10th January 2022, the Bishop of Leeds asked a question on perceptions on attitudes regarding the rule of law in the UK:

The Lord Bishop of Leeds: My Lords, I note that the Statement refers several times to the rule of law, and I am delighted to hear the commitments made by the Minister and the Government. However, it has not gone unnoticed in the Russian press that there have been threats to the rule of law, not least by the Government here proposing legislation that might undermine international treaties. The Statement says:

“The free world must rise to meet the moment. Britain is stepping up and leading by example.”—[Official Report, Commons, 6/1/22; col. 170.]

That is not necessarily how it is seen elsewhere. Perhaps the Minister can comment on that. I do not ask the question to be awkward; I am simply concerned about it.

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Police Crime Sentencing and Courts Bill: Bishop of Gloucester supports establishment of a Women’s Justice Board

On 10th January 2022, during a debate on amendments to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, the Bishop of Gloucester spoke in support of an amendment tabled by Lord Marks of Henley Upon Thames that would establish a Women’s Justice Board to address the needs of women within the criminal justice system:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: My Lords, I add my wholehearted support to this amendment. I am very grateful to the noble Lords, Lord Marks and Lord Ramsbotham, and the noble Baroness, Lady Bennett, for their continued commitment to women in the criminal justice system. As bishop to prisons and president of the Nelson Trust, I am acutely aware, as I have said so often, of the need for a gendered approach to justice. The noble Baroness, Lady Kennedy, has just put that very powerfully.

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Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Bishop of Gloucester raises issue of threats to vulnerable women and girls

On 10th January 2022, the House of Lords debated amendments to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. The Bishop of Gloucester raised the issue of vulnerable women being caught in “joint enterprise” scenarios involving weapons and given prison sentences, and supported amendments which would address this:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: My Lords, I rise to support in particular Amendments 90H, 90J, 90K and 90L. As has been said, they are critical to ensuring that more vulnerable women are not drawn into the criminal justice system through the de facto joint enterprise element of SVROs. Probably like other noble Lords, I was shocked to read the briefing from Agenda, which states that analysis of

“109 joint enterprise cases involving women and girls”

shows that

“there was not a single case in which women and girls had handled a weapon; in 90% of cases they engaged in no violence at all; and in half of the cases they were not even present at the scene of the crime.”

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Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Bishop of Manchester speaks in favour of amendments on Serious Violence Reduction Orders

On 10th January 2022, the House of Lords debated the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill in the fourth day of the report stage. The Bishop of Manchester spoke in support of a group of amendments relating to the implementation of Serious Violence Reduction Orders (SVROs):

The Lord Bishop of Manchester: My Lords, I support Amendments 90H, 90J, 95A, 95B and 95C, to which I have added my name. I also signal my support for other amendments in this group which also seek to control more tightly how serious violence reduction orders will operate. I draw your Lordships’ attention to my work on policing ethics, both for Greater Manchester Police and for the National Police Chiefs’ Council, as set out in the register of interests.

As the noble Baroness, Lady Meacher, has indicated, Amendment 90H seeks to ensure that an SVRO can be applied only when a bladed article or offensive weapon is used to commit an offence, not simply when such an item happens to be present and in the possession of the defendant. As the noble Lord, Lord Paddick, has indicated, as presently drafted, the Bill requires no substantive link between the weapon and the offence. An individual could, for example, commit a road traffic offence while driving home from a church picnic, with their used cutlery on the passenger seat next to them, and the prosecution could ask for an SVRO.

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Bishop of Gloucester asks about access to academic eBooks

The Bishop of Gloucester asked a question on issues of access to academic eBooks on 10th January 2022, during a debate on the economic recovery of the bookselling industry and libraries following the COVID-19 pandemic:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: My Lords, as pro-chancellor of the University of Gloucestershire I am very aware that during the time of pandemic there have been issues with eBooks relating to university libraries. How will the Government address the current issues of excessive pricing, restrictive licensing and lack of availability of academic ebooks?

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