Author: parliamentaryunit

Church Commissioner Questions – Women bishops, funeral poverty, employment tribunal, carbon footprint, WW2 Civilian Memorials

On the 5th November 2015 the Second Church Estates Commissioner, Rt Hon Caroline Spelman MP, answered oral questions in the House of Commons on: women bishops, funeral poverty, the tribunal case of Jeremy Pemberton, the Church’s carbon footprint and a memorial day for civilian casualties of the Second World War. A full transcript is below.

Caroline SpelmanChurch Commissioners

The right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners was asked—

Women Bishops

1. Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab): What assessment she has made of the effect of the introduction of the first woman bishop to the Lords Spiritual on the Church of England; and if she will make a statement. [902007] Continue reading “Church Commissioner Questions – Women bishops, funeral poverty, employment tribunal, carbon footprint, WW2 Civilian Memorials”

Bishop of Coventry asks about support for interreligious dialogue centre in Vienna

On 4th November 2015 the Bishop of Coventry, Rt Revd Christopher Cocksworth received a written answer to a question about support for the King Adbdullah Bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue in Vienna.

Bp Coventry May 2015

The Lord Bishop of Coventry: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what support, financial or otherwise, they have provided to the King Adbdullah Bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue in Vienna. Continue reading “Bishop of Coventry asks about support for interreligious dialogue centre in Vienna”

Bishop of Coventry asks about support for Viennese centre for inter-religious dialogue

On 4th November 2015 the Bishop of Coventry, Rt Revd Christopher Cocksworth, received a written answer about the King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue in Vienna.

Bp Coventry May 2015The Lord Bishop of Coventry: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what support, financial or otherwise, they have provided to the King Adbdullah Bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue in Vienna. Continue reading “Bishop of Coventry asks about support for Viennese centre for inter-religious dialogue”

Bishop of Sheffield speaks about need to support the steel industry

On 3rd November 2015 the House of Lords debated a motion from the Earl of Selborne, “That this House takes note of the Report of the Science and Technology Committee on The Resilience of the Electricity System”. The Bishop of Sheffield, Rt Revd Steven Croft, spoke in the debate to welcome the report, and stress the importance of supporting the steel industry whilst adhering to our climate change obligations.

14.03.27 Bishop of SheffieldThe Lord Bishop of Sheffield: My Lords, along with many others, I warmly welcome this report and its principal recommendations. It seems to me to be clear and timely, and the issues it highlights for the United Kingdom in the medium term are very significant indeed. I particularly welcome, along with others, the recognition that the electricity market is now a managed market. I underline the statement in paragraph 37:

“Balancing security of supply, sustainability and affordability (the trilemma) is a first order issue for the Secretary of State”.

I will focus my remarks on two specific areas. The first is to highlight the importance of the needs of industry and manufacturing when looking at our future energy needs. Continue reading “Bishop of Sheffield speaks about need to support the steel industry”

Bishop of St Albans asks about rural exceptions from the under-occupancy charge

On 3rd November 2015 Baroness Quin asked Her Majesty’s Government “whether they have plans to undertake a regional study of the effects of the under-occupancy charge.” The Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, asked about exemptions for those in social housing in rural areas.

Bishop of St AlbansThe Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, back in 2013 the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee urged that social housing in rural areas should be excluded from the underoccupancy charge, because of the near impossibility of finding alternative accommodation in many rural areas, where it is simply is not available for people to downsize. Already people in rural areas have higher social and housing costs, and there is some evidence that the underoccupancy charge is pushing some families further into debt. Will the Minister tell the House whether Her Majesty’s Government would be willing to undertake a reconsideration of their policy and exclude social housing in rural areas from this measure? Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about rural exceptions from the under-occupancy charge”

Bishop of St Albans asks Government about support payments to farmers

On 3rd November 2015 the Bishop of St Albans received a written answer to a question about the timing of the government’s agri-environment payments.


Bishop St Albans June 2015Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they expect to have fulfilled the agri-environment scheme payments to farmers, and how they will ensure that delays in making such payments do not happen next year. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about support payments to farmers”

Bishop of St Albans asks about two-child limit for new Universal Credit claimants

On 2nd November 2015 the Bishop of St Albans asked the Government about the impact of the proposed two-child limit for new Universal Credit claimants.

Bishop of St AlbansLord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many families with three or more children born before 6 April 2017 they estimated would be affected by the proposed two-child limit for new claimants for Universal Credit in the calculations of the Budget policy costings for (1) 2017–18, (2) 2018–19, and (3) 2019–20.

Lord Freud: The information requested is not available for publication.

(via Parliament.uk)

Church of England Week in Westminster 26th-30th October 2015

Welcome to the Church of England’s weekly round-up of activity in Parliament.Westminster

This week, Rt Revd Rachel Treweek, the Bishop of Gloucester, was introduced to the House of Lords. Bishops spoke and voted on Government proposals for tax credits, support for credit unions, young people in the criminal justice system and help for those seeking refuge from Syria.  Bishops also asked questions on Syrian refugees, Saudi Arabia and benefit fraud. In the House of Commons, Second Church Estates Commissioner answered questions on church support for credit unions land for housing development. Continue reading “Church of England Week in Westminster 26th-30th October 2015”

Bishop of Coventry raises religious freedom in Saudi Arabia

On 30th October 2015 the Bishop of Coventry, Rt Revd Christopher Cocksowrth, received a written answer to a question on religious freedom in Saudi Arabia.

Bp Coventry May 2015The Lord Bishop of Coventry: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of steps taken by Saudi Arabia to revise textbooks, curricula, and teaching methods to remove
content disparaging religions other than Islam. Continue reading “Bishop of Coventry raises religious freedom in Saudi Arabia”

Bishop of Portsmouth speaks about needs of young people in the criminal justice system

On 29th October 2015 the House of Lords debated a motion from Lord Harris of Haringey “that this House takes note of the case for taking action to address the problems of young people before they enter the criminal justice system in order to reduce the prison population, improve conditions within prison, and focus on the rehabilitation of prisoners, as set out in The Harris Review: Changing Prisons, Saving Lives.” The Bishop of Portsmouth, Rt Rev Christopher Foster, spoke in the debate.

14.04.09 Portsmouth maiden speech 2

The Lord Bishop of Portsmouth: My Lords, I welcome the very thorough and wide-ranging review conducted by the noble Lord, Lord Harris. The Bishop to Prisons, the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Rochester, regrets that he cannot be in his place today and contribute to this very welcome debate. The Harris inquiry took every opportunity to talk to young people and to the families who have tragically lost their children while they were in the care of the state in prisons and young offender institutions. Continue reading “Bishop of Portsmouth speaks about needs of young people in the criminal justice system”