Author: parliamentaryunit

Bishop of St Albans – Forced Marriage (Written Answer)

On 12th January 2015, the Bishop of St Albans, the Rt Revd Alan Smith, received an answer to a written question from the Home Office Minister, on the subject of forced marriage.

Bishop of St AlbansThe Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they collect data on the number of British girls sent abroad to marry each year; and if they do not collect such data, what they are doing to assess the scale of such activity.[HL3493]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord Bates): The Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) was established in 2005 to lead on the government’s forced marriage policy, outreach and casework. The FMU operates both inside the UK, where support is provided to any individual, and overseas, where consular assistance is provided to British nationals, including dual nationals. In 2013, the FMU gave advice or support related to a possible forced marriage in 1302 cases. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans – Forced Marriage (Written Answer)”

Church of England Week in Westminster 5th-9th January 2015

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

Westminster-abbeyThis week, bishops in the House of Lords took part in a debate on early years intervention and asked questions on climate change, Ukraine, FGM, air pollution and electricity imports. During prayers in the House, the Bishop of St Albans led Peers in a minute’s silence following the terrorist attacks in Paris. In the House of Commons the Second Church Estates Commissioner welcomed  news that the Lords Spiritual (Women) Bill will be debated by MPs on the 19th January. Continue reading “Church of England Week in Westminster 5th-9th January 2015”

Bishop of St Albans asks about plight of Ukrainians living in Crimea

On 8th January 2015 Lord Spicer asked Her Majesty’s Government ‘what is their most recent assessment of the position in Ukraine’. The Bishop of St Albans, Rt Rev Alan Smith, asked a supplementary question.
Bishop of St AlbansThe Lord Bishop of St Albans:

My Lords, we must not forget those Ukrainians living in Crimea who now find themselves under the Russian state. Could the Minister update us on what representations have been made on their behalf and, in particular, whether the OSCE monitors have made any progress in gaining access and finding out what is going on?

Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about plight of Ukrainians living in Crimea”

Bishop of Chester asks Government about electricity imports

On 8th January 2015 the Bishop of Chester, Rt Rev Peter Forster, asked an oral question on importing electricity.

Continue reading “Bishop of Chester asks Government about electricity imports”

Early Years Intervention – Speech by Bishop of St Albans

On 8th January 2015 Peers debated a motion in the name of Baroness Massey of Darwen, ‘that this House takes note of the case for early years intervention in breaking the cycle of deprivation and promoting social mobility’. The Bishop of St Albans, Rt Rev Alan Smith, spoke in the debate:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans:

Bishop of St AlbansI, too, thank the noble Baroness, Lady Massey, for pressing this very important issue. It is, as has already been noted, an extremely complex one. We are talking about nothing less than a profound culture change in many local communities if we are to break the cycle of deprivation and increase social mobility. Continue reading “Early Years Intervention – Speech by Bishop of St Albans”

MPs to debate Lords Spiritual (Women) Bill on 19th January

On 8th January 2015 the Leader of the House of Commons told MPs that the Lords Spiritual (Women) Bill would have all stages debated in the Commons on the 19th January. The Second Church Estates Commissioner, Rt Hon Sir Tony Baldry MP, welcomed the news.

The First Secretary of State and Leader of the House of Commons (Mr William Hague) [extract]:..The provisional business for the week commencing 19 January will include:

Monday 19 January—Consideration of an allocation of time motion, followed by all stages of the Lords Spiritual (Women) Bill…

Continue reading “MPs to debate Lords Spiritual (Women) Bill on 19th January”

Bishop of St Albans asks Government about progress made at UN Climate Change Conference

On 7th January 2015 the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Rev Alan Smith, asked an oral question of Government about the recent UN Climate Change Conference. The exchanges, including supplementary questions from Peers, are below:

Climate Change: UN Conference

Question

Asked by The Lord Bishop of St Albans

Bishop of St Albans

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the agreement reached at the United Nations climate change conference in Lima in December 2014. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about progress made at UN Climate Change Conference”

Bishop of St Albans asks Government about action on tackling FGM

On 6th January 2015 the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Rev Alan Smith, received written answers to five questions of Government on female genital mutilation (or FGM):

Female Genital Mutilation

Question

Asked by The Lord Bishop of St Albans

Bishop of St Albans

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they are resourcing the provision of training and education in communities in the United Kingdom in which female genital mutilation is practised.[HL3454] Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about action on tackling FGM”

Bishop of St Albans asks Government about air pollution and asthma

On 6th January 2015 Lord Berkeley asked Her Majesty’s Government ‘what plans the National Health Service has to reduce the number of premature deaths caused by the combined impact of nitrogen dioxide and fine particles emitted by diesel engines’. The Bishop of St Albans, Rt Rev Alan Smith, asked a supplementary question:

Bishop of St AlbansThe Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, with 4.3 million adults and 1.1 million children suffering from the effects of asthma-related conditions, does the Minister agree that we need to look closely at the World Health Organization’s recent news that an increasing number of British cities are now breaching the safe air pollution levels? Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about air pollution and asthma”

Make 2015 a year of action on development and climate change, Bishop of Birmingham urges

The following letter, co-signed by the Bishop of Birmingham and leaders of other faiths, appeared in The Times newspaper on 6th January 2015:

A year for progress

Sir, This year will provide a once-in-a-generation opportunity: in September world leaders decide on new goals for sustainable development and in December a new climate treaty.

Continue reading “Make 2015 a year of action on development and climate change, Bishop of Birmingham urges”