Continue reading “Church Commissioner Written Questions – Church Buildings & Solar Power”
Welcome to the Church of England’s weekly round-up of activity in Parliament.
This week bishops in the House of Lords spoke in debates on the Government’s Childcare Bill, the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the role of the armed forces, transport in the north of England and regulation of the polling industry. Bishops also asked questions on violence against women, fuel poverty, gaming machines and advertising aimed at children. In the House of Commons the Second Church Estates Commissioner, Rt Hon Caroline Spelman MP, answered questions from MPs on church buildings, Christians in Iran, clergy wellbeing and the diversity of Synod.
Continue reading “Church of England Week in Westminster 15th-19th June 2015”
“My opinion is that we should let the polling industry do its best. I would categorise it more in the realm of entertainment than science. It is helpful, people enjoy it and it is useful but we need a sense of proportion.” – Bishop of Derby, 18/6/15
On Thursday 18th June 2015 the Bishop of Derby, Rt Revd Alastair Redfern took part in a Lords debate tabled by Lord Lipsey, to ask the Government “whether they plan to regulate the opinion-polling industry.” He said:
The Lord Bishop of Derby: My Lords, I want to look at opinion poll industry regulation in a general way, rather than focusing on a particular case, as the noble Lords, Lord Lipsey and Lord McColl, have done.
In the spirit of the Motion I am going to offer an opinion. My first point is about opinion itself. Opinion is, by definition, fragile and changeable. It is lite—that is L-I-T-E, for Hansard—and that is very different from attitudes and prejudices, which are firm and more long-standing. We live in a time of opinion, when people just tweet things without much thought—bang, out goes the view. Continue reading “Bishop of Derby: Opinion polls ‘more in the realm of entertainment than science’”
On Thursday 18th June the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, received a written answer to a question to Government on fuel bills and Fuel Direct.
The Lord Bishop of St Albans To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the affordability of a standard Fuel Direct rate of £3.70 for direct payments for arrears on fuel bills; and whether in setting that rate they considered (1) allowing some customers to pay a lower rate of direct deduction, and (2) allowing customers to pay by Fuel Direct for ongoing bills when they are not in arrears. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about fuel bill home budgeting”
On 18th June 2015 the Rt. Hon Caroline Spelman MP answered questions from MPs as Second Church Estates Commissioner. Mrs Spelman, who was answering questions for the first time since taking on the role, was asked about improving the sustainability of church buildings, Christians in Iran, the wellbeing of clergy and the diversity of the General Synod of the Church of England. Mrs Spelman also paid tribute to the former Second Church Estates Commissioner the Rt. Hon Sir Tony Baldry and expressed sympathy for the Methodist Church in South Carolina following the recent tragic shootings.
The full text is available below and a video link is also available, here
On Wednesday 17th June 2015 the House of Lords debated a motion in the name of Lord Sterling of Plaistow “to ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they consider that the current defence budget is sufficient to enable the Armed Forces to meet the needs of the United Kingdom’s long-term foreign policy.” The Bishop of Southwark, Rt Revd Christopher Chessun, spoke in the debate, highlighting the need to resource conflict resolution and post-conflict stabilisation in Syria and other parts of the region.
The Lord Bishop of Southwark: My Lords, I too welcome this debate and thank the noble Lord, Lord Sterling, for securing it. With the strategic defence and security review we have an opportunity for a wider debate on the politics of defence that might help to reshape our understanding of the purpose and task of our Armed Forces. The fundamentals that have underpinned UK foreign policy and defence spending in the past will need to be adapted to the changed circumstances we face, especially in the Middle East and our European neighbourhood. Continue reading “Bishop of Southwark calls on Government to invest in peacekeeping and post-conflict role of armed forces”
On Wednesday 17th June 2015 the House of Lords debated a Government motion in the name of Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon “that this House takes note of transport connectivity and infrastructure in the north of England.” The Bishop of Derby, Rt Revd Alastair Redfern, spoke in the debate, highlighting transport, infrastructure and investment questions for the east Midlands and Derby diocesan area.
The Lord Bishop of Derby: My Lords, I, too, thank the Minister for his clear, optimistic and encouraging introduction, and associate myself with the noble Lord, Lord Prescott, and his desire for this to proceed quickly and effectively. I declare an interest in that I come from Derby in the east Midlands, so I feel a bit like an interloper in this debate about the north—although part of our diocese is the Peak District, which may just qualify as the north. Continue reading “Bishop of Derby asks Government about transport infrastructure and investment in the East Midlands”
On Wednesday 17th June 2015 the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, received a written reply to a question to Government about regulating advertising to children.
The Lord Bishop of St Albans To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the Impact Report 2015 by Bye Buy Childhood, what plans they have to work with the regulators to strengthen penalties against companies who repeatedly have complaints about their advertising upheld. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about regulating complaints about adverts aimed at children”
“I believe that the time is ripe for a new moral vision of the one world in which we all live, not just because it is morally right that we should do that but because, frankly, it is in our interests.” – Bishop of St Albans, 16/6/15
On Tuesday 16th June 2015 the Lords debated a motion by Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale “to ask Her Majesty’s Government what are their priorities for the Sustainable Development Goals to be agreed by the United Nations in September.” The Bishop of St Albams, Rt Revd Alan Smith, spoke in the debate.
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord McConnell, for securing for us this opportunity to debate this important area.
As we mark the 800th anniversary of the sealing of Magna Carta this week, we are reminded that some ideas, initiatives or visions take a long time to come to fruition. Sometimes, all that one generation can do is to plant the acorn and it is for subsequent generations to appreciate the fully grown oak tree. Continue reading “Sustainable Development Goals – Bishop of St Albans calls for a new moral vision”
“On behalf of the well-being of the children themselves, if we are going to make this increase in provision, which I am sure we will and indeed should, let us try to ensure that all the regulations that follow place the child at the centre, not the adults, whether those adults be the parents, the providers or the politicians.” – Bishop of Durham, 16/6/15
On Tuesday 16th June 2015 the House of Lords debated the Government’s Childcare Bill. Details about the Bill can be seen here. The Bishop of Durham, Rt Revd Paul Butler, spoke in the debate, raising concerns related to funding, capacity, pay and putting the needs of children first. The full text of his speech is below, with extracts from the Minister’s reply, and can also be watched on the Parliament website here.
The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, in welcoming the general intent of this Bill, I wish to raise a number of concerns. It seems to me that there are already several common threads in what is being said. It may well be that they will be addressed—they will need to be—in the secondary legislation, but to be able fully to support the Bill I believe this House needs some assurances regarding these concerns. In raising them, I wish to point out that I have consulted some who are engaged in this work already, and also those for whom it is intended to be a benefit—parents and, indeed, grandparents. Continue reading “Childcare Bill – Speech by Bishop of Durham”
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