On the 22nd January 2017 Lord Lexden asked the Government “whether they intend to review the law governing the naming of deceased individuals against whom criminal allegations have been made.” In his follow up question Lord Lexden raised the case of the deceased Bishop George Bell and the recent Carlile Review. The Bishop of Peterborough, Rt Revd Donald Allister, also asked a follow up question:
The Lord Bishop of Peterborough: My Lords, this has been a very difficult case, but Bishop Bell is not the only person whose reputation has been severely damaged by such accusations—some are dead and some still alive. I urge the Minister and the Government to take very seriously the call for a major review of anonymity. In all cases where the complainant has a right to be anonymous, there seems to be a case for the respondent also to be anonymous, and in cases until there is overwhelming evidence to suggest guilt, it seems reasonable for people’s reputations not to be damaged in this public way. Continue reading “Bishop of Peterborough asks Government to review anonymity in cases of criminal accusation”
This week in the House of Lords the Bishop of Chichester was introduced and took his seat on the Bishops’ Benches. Bishops spoke in debates on the work of charities, green finance, defence and modern languages. They asked questions about the impact of the Corillion collapse on apprentices, faith at the Commonwealth Summit, displaced people in Kurdistan, UK defence capability, refugee family reunion, and development aid. In the House of Commons, the Second Church Estates Commissioner highlighted the work of the Clewer Initiative in tackling modern slavery, and answered a written question on St. Elisabeth’s Church, Eastbourne. 
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: I am grateful that the noble Baroness, Lady Berridge, tabled this debate, and in particular that she has framed it in the context of a celebration. Having said that, we also need to face the fact that there are a number of quite shameful things in our history that we need to confront. 
The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, I add my thanks to the noble Lord, Lord Teverson, for securing this debate. This year’s COP 24 UN climate change conference will be a crucial opportunity for the world to accelerate its climate ambitions in order to try to meet the 1.5 degree Paris commitment. This country faces a choice: do we want to lead the charge on this or drag our heels somewhere near the back? I welcome the UK Government’s recent focus on environmental issues. Initiatives such as the green finance task force, the endorsement of the Financial Stability Board’s task force on climate-related financial disclosure and the UK’s setting up of the Powering Past Coal Alliance at COP 23 all show how we are influencing discussions at global climate change meetings. 
The Lord Bishop of Portsmouth: My Lords, I confide in you. Priests— even bishops, perhaps particularly so—are inclined to repeat themselves. I imagine noble Lords might have noticed. I have heard it said that we have only one sermon in us and just dress the message up differently each Sunday. I will be repeating my message today, and I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Sterling, for the opportunity to do so. I am just as grateful to the noble Earl, Lord Howe, for listening to my repetition with the grace, care and attention that we all appreciate.
The Lord Bishop of Derby: My Lords, I, too, thank the noble Baroness, Lady Coussins. I want to say something about the general importance of the subject, and then some specific things about business and primary. The noble Baroness has set out a lot of the data, which is the foundation.
The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, noting recommendation 5, will Her Majesty’s Government provide detail about how DfID assesses its partners’ commitment to freedom of religion and belief when determining where the funding goes around the world? 
The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, what steps are being taken to pressure the EU to accelerate family reunification processes? Our colleagues in the Anglican communion in Europe have noted that applications made for family members in Greece to come to this country are currently taking well over a year and that the processes have, sadly, slowed in the past 18 months. 
The Church of England in Parliament 
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