parliamentaryunit

Bishop of St Albans asks about rural proofing transport decarbonisation

The Bishop of St Albans asked a question on rural proofing public transport decarbonisation plans on 19th May 2025:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, it is absolutely right that we try to move forward to decarbonise our public transport system, but many of our rural areas have quite inadequate public transport already, before we start to add that as an extra burden. Could the Minister tell us what rural-proofing is being done on this policy so that we can make sure that we are getting levelling up among rural areas?

Bishop of St Albans asks about carbon emissions

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 19th May 2025:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the report published on 22 April by Friends of the Earth International, Climate and biodiversity in freefall, particularly the finding that 78 per cent of the top 50 carbon offsetting projects are likely ineffective or worthless.

Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Bill: Bishop of Lichfield highlights concerns around social security

The Bishop of Lichfield spoke at the second reading of the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Bill on 15th May 2025, raising concerns regarding the impact of the bill on the social security system:

The Lord Bishop of Lichfield: My Lords, I am very glad to see the name of the noble Baroness, Lady Spielman, on the speakers’ list for this debate; I look forward to her maiden speech and her future contributions to this House.

We all need to acknowledge the understandable frustration, felt from government downwards, about waste in public spending and fraud perpetrated at the public’s expense. It is right that expenditure be managed carefully, ensuring that people receive support when they need it, and eliminating fraud and error within the system as far as that is possible.

At the encouragement of my right reverend friend the Bishop of Leicester, who much regrets that he cannot be in his place today, I will focus on the second limb of this Bill, which concerns individual claimants of social security. This is a matter of morality. To support people into work, where they are able; to ensure that people can enjoy an acceptable standard of living when they cannot work or to top up their low income; and to deliver a fair and sustainable social security system now and in the future: these are all moral imperatives. Addressing fraud and error—ensuring that government can recover money when required—is also a morally vital matter of maintaining public consent, which should be a welcome outcome of this proposed legislation. Put simply, our social security system must both be fair and be perceived as fair by the public.

Bishop of Lichfield asks about facilitating integration in UK communities

The Bishop of Lichfield asked a question on facilitating community integration on 15 May 2025, following a government statement on the UK immigration system:

The Lord Bishop of Lichfield: My Lords, the White Paper rightly recognises the role that successful integration plays in enabling people to realise their full potential and increasing community cohesion. It particularly highlights the importance of language learning. Yet this, though important, is not the sole factor that influences the extent to which someone is successfully integrated in society. Successful integration is multifaceted. It requires, for example, the provision of adequate housing, employment opportunities, social networks and the ability to navigate services. A more holistic approach to integration is needed—one that extends beyond the development of language skills. What consideration are the Government giving to introducing more expansive measures to facilitate successful integration?

Bishop of Lichfield asks about reintegration of ex-offenders

The Bishop of Lichfield tabled a question on government support for ex-offenders to support their transition from life in prison and their reintegration into society on 15th May 2025:

The Lord Bishop of Lichfield: To ask His Majesty’s Government what support they are providing for ex-offenders to support their transition from life in prison and their reintegration into society.

Bishop of St Albans asks about support for families experiencing financial distress

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 15th May 2025:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government, following the publication of polling data on 11 April by Christians Against Poverty, Child poverty in the UK, what action they are taking to support parents and carers experiencing financial distress.

Renters Rights Bill: Bishop of Manchester tables amendments on temporary accommodation and notice for property inspections

On 14th May 2025, the Bishop of Manchester tabled two amendments to the Renters Rights Bill in committee:

The Lord Bishop of Manchester: 249: Clause 101, page 129, line 2, leave out from “(homelessness)” to end of line 4

Member’s explanatory statement:

This amendment would make the Decent homes standard apply to all homeless temporary accommodation provided under the Housing Act 1996.

I thought that my amendment was never going to come. Amendment 249 stands in my name, and I am glad to support Amendment 252, to which I have added my name, and Amendments 250 and 251 in this group. I declare my interest as co-owner, with my wife, of one rather modest apartment in the West Midlands, which we let out.

As someone who has chaired a wide range of housing associations, including a large local authority transfer and an arm’s-length management company, I have seen the huge positive impact that the decent homes standard has had since one was first applied to social housing. Not least, it has forced landlords to pay proper attention to their existing stock, rather than focusing all their energies and resources on new developments. Hence, I am delighted that this Bill will, for the first time, extend the standard to much of the private rented stock; it is a sector desperately plagued by underinvestment in repairs, maintenance and stock improvement. One in five privately rented homes does not currently meet the decent homes standard compared to 10% for social housing. More than one in 10 has a category 1 hazard, which is two and a half times the figure for social housing.

Bishop of St Albans asks about debt advisory services

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 14th May 2025:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government,

following the publication of polling data on 11 April by Christians Against Poverty, Employment and financial difficulty, what assessment they have made of the levels of problem debt among full-time workers, and what measures they are taking to support full-time workers who are in financial difficulty
following the publication of polling data on 11 April by Christians Against Poverty, In-person debt advice, what plans they have to address the scale of problem debt.
following the publication of polling data on 11 April by Christians Against Poverty, In-person debt advice, what steps they are taking to expand access to and fund free debt advice services authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Bishop of St Albans asks about tackling rural homelessness

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 14th May 2025:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what steps they plan to take to tackle rural homelessness.

Bishop of St Albans asks about women’s health data and microplastics research

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answers on 14th May 2025:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to address (1) the under-representation of women in health data, and (2) the lack of female-only UK clinical trials.

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