Author: parliamentaryunit

Bishop of Winchester asks about provision of coronavirus vaccines in developing countries

The Bishop of Winchester received the following written answer on 10th March 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Winchester asked Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to assist developing countries to develop a working cold-chain storage system for storing COVID-19 vaccines at the required temperatures.

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Overseas Operations (Service Personnel and Veterans) Bill: Bishop of Leeds raises concerns on prosecution limits

On 21st March 2021, the House of Lords debated amendments to the Overseas Operations (Service Personnel and Veterans) Bill. The Bishop of Leeds spoke in support of amendment 14, which would provide that the presumption against prosecution in the bill does not apply to war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide or torture:

The Lord Bishop of Leeds: My Lords, I understand the stated rationale for this Bill and I state at the outset that I have enormous respect for the noble Baroness the Minister, but I am struggling. I am not a lawyer, but I would like to focus on a couple of specific questions. I understand the difficulty with vexatious and untimely litigation, which is a curse, but legitimate litigation, however inconvenient, is surely the blessing of a free and civilised society that honours international law and a rules-based system in more than words.

The basic reason why I speak in support of Amendment 14 is that I fear the law of predictable or conscious consequences more than the law of unintended consequences. I ask the Minister to explain clearly this anomaly, which I cannot get my head around: this Bill, as currently drafted, will make it possible for an incident of torture or murder not to be prosecuted while a sexual offence committed in the same incident would be subject to prosecution. That suggests to me either that the reference to sexual offences is arbitrary or that torture and crimes against humanity and so on should also be admitted in the same category.

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Bishop of Worcester asks about sourcing NHS pay rises

The Bishop of Worcester asked a question on tackling inefficiencies in NHS resources to provide for future pay rises for health workers, during a discussion on the NHS pay review on 9th March 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Worcester: My Lords, I appreciate the immense, unprecedented and unforeseen pressure that the Government are under as they struggle with the devastating effects of the pandemic on public finances. At the same time, as has been noted, we all want to recognise the huge debt of gratitude that we owe to nurses and other health workers. Recognising that would best be done by a pay increase. We are told that a 1% increase is all that can be afforded. Can the Minister comment on whether he thinks tackling the estimated £2 billion lost annually through inefficiencies related to unnecessary A&E attendance and GP consultations might give more wriggle room?

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Bishop of Gloucester asks about tackling violence against women and girls

The Bishop of Gloucester asked a question on the implementation of a framework to tackle root causes of violence and discrimination against women and girls on 9th March 2021, during a discussion on global efforts to increase women’s equality:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester [V]: I understand that the Government are investing over £67 million in the What Works to Prevent Violence Against Women and Girls programme. What plans do they have to follow the lead set by Australia in developing a national primary prevention framework to tackle the root causes of bias and discrimination against women and girls?

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Bishop of Coventry asks about aid and refugee support in Sudan and Ethiopia

The Bishop of Coventry received the following written answers on 9th March 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Coventry asked Her Majesty’s Government, further to reports that over 60,000 refugees have left Ethiopia and entered Sudan following conflict in Darfur, what steps they are taking to ensure that (1) this does not destabilise Sudan, and (2) access to humanitarian aid is not affected.

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Bishop of Worcester asks about human rights and freedom of religion and belief overseas

The Bishop of Worcester received the following written answers on 9th March 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Worcester asked Her Majesty’s Government which countries are observers to the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance.

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Bishop of Winchester asks about access to COVID-19 vaccines in developing countries

The Bishop of Winchester received the following written answer on 9th March 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Winchester asked Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the COVAX Facility’s ability to provide (1) timely, (2) equitable, and (3) universal, access to COVID-19 vaccines for developing countries; and what plans they have to work with other countries to coordinate the relaxation of intellectual property protections for COVID-19 pharmaceutical technology to allow for such access.

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Domestic Abuse Bill: Bishop of Manchester presses Government on financial support for those fleeing domestic abuse

On 8th March 2021 the House of Lords considered amendments to the Government’s Domestic Abuse Bill at its Report Stage. The Bishop of Manchester had co-sponsored amendments with two other Peers, on exempting from the benefit cap for a year all those forced to claim benefits because of domestic abuse. The Government Minister responded to say that guidance would be strengthened to local authorities that those fleeing domestic abuse should be given priority in receiving discretionary housing payments. 
The Lord Bishop of Manchester [V]: My Lords, I thank the Minister for her response to this group of amendments, in particular to Amendments 72 and 102, to which I have added my name. I also thank her for her reassurance that local authorities will be given clear encouragement to prioritise the needs of domestic abuse victims, as the noble Lord, Lord Best, requested.
Can she ensure that national statistics on the number of such cases accepted and rejected in each year will be counted and made public?

Votes: Domestic Abuse Bill

On 8th March 2021 the House of Lords considered amendments to the Government’s Domestic Abuse Bill at its Report Stage.

Five bishops took part in a vote on an amendment from Baronesss Campbell of Surbiton on including carers or those with “personally connected lives” in the scope of the Bill to prevent abuse by a care giver. Continue reading “Votes: Domestic Abuse Bill”

Bishop of Worcester raises need for more family foster care provision

On 8th March 2021 the Bishop of Worcester asked a question he had tabled of Government on teenagers and older children in care.
The Lord Bishop of Worcester: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the quality of provision for teenagers in the care system.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education and Department for International Trade
(Baroness Berridge) (Con): My Lords, throughout the Covid-19 crisis, the Government have worked closely with local authorities to help ensure that they continue to meet their duties to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people in care, with particular regard to their education, health and well-being. Some £4.6 billion of funding has been made available to support councils, with a further £1.55 billion announced as part of the spending review.

The Lord Bishop of Worcester: My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness for her Answer and for the good work that has been done. However, I am concerned that Barnardo’s declared a state of emergency in June last year as a result of a 44% increase in the number of children needing foster care referred to it. According to one investigation, more than 8,300 children were placed in unregulated, semi-independent accommodation last year. Many of those—more than one-third—were outside their local authority area. What steps are the Government taking to ensure that teenagers and older children in care are offered family-based provision, where they are more likely to thrive?