On 27th January 2016 the Bishop of Portsmouth, the Rt Revd Christopher Foster opened the second day of Report Stage on the Government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill with an amendment in his name. The amendment, supported by Labour, Liberal Democrat and Crossbench Peers, proposed exemptions from the two-child limit for new claimants of tax credit and universal credit for kinship carers, bereaved parents, those fleeing domestic violence and disabled children. During his response to the amendment the Minister Lord Freud offered a number of concessions, most notably on kinship carers, and as a result the Bishop did not press the amendment to a vote. A full transcript of the Bishop’s opening and closing remarks, the Minister’s response and an intervention from the Bishop of Durham, are below.
Category: Bills
Legislation before Parliament
Housing Bill: Bishop of St Albans raises concerns on rural housing and right to buy
On 26th January 2016, the Bishop of St Albans, the Rt Revd Alan Smith, took part in the Second Reading debate of the Government’s Housing and Planning Bill. The Bishop raised concerns about the impact of the bill on rural affordable housing, right to buy, implications for local councils, and the effect of the Bill on Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities.
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I, too, add my congratulations to the noble Baroness, Lady Thornhill, and the noble Lord, Lord Thurlow, on their excellent maiden speeches.
I shall limit my comments to three areas. My first concern stems from the right-to-buy deal that has been agreed between the Government and the NHF, and the provisions within the Bill which will accommodate starter homes within affordable housing requirements. My concern is that housing which would once have been provided as affordable rented housing—affordable in perpetuity—will now be replaced by starter homes and homes to buy, with the only condition on their resale being that they be held off the market for a period of five years. Continue reading “Housing Bill: Bishop of St Albans raises concerns on rural housing and right to buy”
Housing Bill: Bishop of Rochester asks about affordable housing and lifetime secure tenancies
On 26th January 2016, the Bishop of Rochester, the Rt Revd James Langstaff, took part in the Second Reading debate of the Government’s Housing and Planning Bill. The Bishop raised concerns about the impact of the bill on affordable housing and lifetime secure tenancies. The Bishop of St Albans also spoke in the debate.
The Lord Bishop of Rochester: My Lords, I, too, welcome the opportunity to hear the maiden speeches of the noble Baroness, Lady Thornhill, and the noble Lord, Lord Thurlow. I look forward to the contributions that they will make to your Lordships’ House.
There is a clear view on all sides of this House, the other place and across large parts of the nation that more housing is needed. The questions concern whether this Bill will help to deliver that housing in the right way and in the right places for the people who need it most. Within my diocese at Ebbsfleet we have one of the largest single housing developments in the United Kingdom—a completely new development which will house up to 45,000 new people. While I have questions about some of the details of that development, and some of the details are as yet unknown, I am generally supportive of what is intended. So I am not against new development and I welcome those things in the Bill which may make that possible in appropriate ways. Continue reading “Housing Bill: Bishop of Rochester asks about affordable housing and lifetime secure tenancies”
Welfare Reform Bill Divisions, Report Stage day 1
On the 25th January 2016 two votes took place during the first day of Report Stage on the Government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill.
House of Lords Division Lobby
Continue reading “Welfare Reform Bill Divisions, Report Stage day 1”
Welfare Reform Bill: Bishop of Durham supports amendments to rename Social Mobility Commission with ‘Life Chances’
On 25th January the House of Lords considered the Government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill at its Report Stage. The Bishop of Durham, the Rt Revd Paul Butler,spoke to amendments he had co-sponsored with Baroness Lister of Burtersett, to replace Social Mobility definitions with those of ‘Life Chances’. The amendments were not put to a division, but withdrawn after the debate. The Bishop’s speech and those of others are below.
The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, I support this amendment. Yesterday, I spent a delightful evening with a small number of academics after preaching at Evensong in an Oxford college—Worcester College. It was a very pleasant evening. However, as I sat there, I kept coming back in my mind to today’s debate because I was reminded of the extraordinary privilege of being in an Oxford college and the elite nature of it. This is not to criticise it or put it down; I had the privilege of studying in a private hall in Oxford when I trained for my ordination. However, I found myself thinking about the vast number of children and young people I meet in schools and colleges around the north-east, and have met in other parts of the country over the years, for whom such privilege is not their aim. Continue reading “Welfare Reform Bill: Bishop of Durham supports amendments to rename Social Mobility Commission with ‘Life Chances’”
Welfare Reform Bill: Bishop of Durham passes amendment to Bill on measurement of child poverty
On 25th January 2016, the Bishop of Durham, Rt Revd Paul Butler, led a debate on an amendment he had tabled to the Government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill. The amendment, at the Bill’s Report Stage, sought to ensure that Government would continue to use income as part of its measurement for child poverty.The amendment was supported by the Labour and Liberal Democrat frontbench and by a crossbench Peer. The Bishop put the amendment to a vote, which the House passed by 290 to 198. His speech and others from the debate are below.
Welfare Reform Bill: Bishop of St Albans supports amendment on Disability reporting
On 25th January 2016, Baroness Campbell of Surbiton led a debate on an amendment she had tabled to the Government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill. The amendment, at the Bill’s Report Stage, would require Government to commit to statutory reporting of the disability employment gap. The Bishop of St Albans, the Rt Revd Alan Smith, spoke in support of the amendment. It was withdrawn after the debate, following assurances by Government. The Bishop’s speech and extracts of those by the Minister and Baroness Campbell are below.
Immigration Bill: Bishop of Southwark supports amendment to allow asylum seekers to work
On the 20th January 2016 the Bishop of Southwark, the Rt Revd Christopher Chessun spoke in support of an amendment to the Government’s Immigration Bill, in the name of Lord Kennedy of Southwark. The Bishop supported the aim of the amendment that asylum seekers should be allowed to work whilst waiting for their claims to be processed. The Bishop pointed to a resolution from the General Synod of the Church of England, which considered this issue in 2009 and favoured a 9 month period after which individuals could seek work. The amendment was withdrawn at the end of the debate.
The Lord Bishop of Southwark: My Lords, Amendment 134, which I wish to support, is simple, just and proportionate in its aims. I accept that Home Office officials must, in the discharge of their duties in this area, deal with barriers of language, emotional distress, the fear of authority, the complexity of people’s lives and, on occasion, deceit. All this takes time. However, it is far from unknown for applicants for asylum to wait months or even years for a substantive decision in their case. This subjects them to a fearful limbo, with limited means of support and the background anxiety of not knowing for a very prolonged period what the outcome will be. Furthermore, we know from the experience of our own citizens the deleterious effects of prolonged inactivity on their emotional and physical well-being, and how this can erode an individual’s skill base
Welfare Reform Bill: Bishop of Rochester backs amendment on supported housing
On 12th January 2016 the House of Lords considered the Government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill in its fifth and final day of Committee.
The Bishop of Rochester, Rt Revd James Langstaff, co-sponsored an amendment to clause 22 of the Bill, concerned with exceptions. The amendment, which was withdrawn after the debate, sought to exclude supported housing from the proposed 12% cuts in social housing rents.
The Lord Bishop of Rochester: My Lords, when I added my name to the amendment in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Best, I did so in the naive belief that we might be pushing at an open door. I still maintain that belief because I hope that the Minister will reassure us on some of these matters. I, too, cannot believe it was intentional that we would be threatening to undermine the housing provision for some of the most vulnerable people in our society. The two noble Lords who have just spoken have made many of the points which I would have made, and others have been made earlier this evening. Continue reading “Welfare Reform Bill: Bishop of Rochester backs amendment on supported housing”
Trade Union Bill: Bishop of Rochester calls for focus on better relationships over more regulation
On the 11th January 2016 the Rt Revd James Langstaff, Bishop of Rochester, spoke during the Second Reading of the Government’s Trade Union Bill. The Bishop called on Government to foster a culture of good practice and partnership rather than introducing fresh measures to increase regulation and control.
The Lord Bishop of Rochester: My Lords, we on these Benches are always wary of involving ourselves in debates that, as we have already seen, are likely to become fairly polarised in political ways. Of course, this is a Second Reading debate, in which we try to focus on matters of intention and principle. Therefore, I dare to step in. Indeed, it is only because my right reverend friend the Bishop of Bristol has conspired to get himself on a plane to Uganda at this precise moment that I am standing in his place at all. I rather wish that he had been here instead of me, but there we are.
We have an interest in these matters, because many of the origins of the trade union movement lie in close partnership with the churches of this land, not least the Methodist Church but others also. From these Benches, we have a continuing concern for the flourishing of those things that are to do with civil society in our nation, and, within civil society, of those things that we think of as intermediate institutions, of which trade unions are a very good example. Therefore, the place of trade unions is of concern to us. Continue reading “Trade Union Bill: Bishop of Rochester calls for focus on better relationships over more regulation”
The Church of England in Parliament 
You must be logged in to post a comment.