Legislation before Parliament
On the 27th January 2016 the Bishop of Durham, the Rt Revd Paul Butler, spoke during the second day of the Report Stage of the Government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill. The Bishop spoke in support of an amendment in the name of Lord Best, to exclude supported housing from the proposed social housing rent reduction.
On the 27th January 2016 bishops took part in one vote during the Report Stage day 2 debate on the Government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill. The amendment was to negate planned reductions in payments for those receiving Employment Support Allowance in the work related activity group.
House of Lords Division Lobby
Continue reading “Welfare Reform Bill: Divisions, Report Stage day 2”
On 27th January 2016 the Bishop of Portsmouth, the Rt Revd Christopher Foster, proposed an amendment at Report Stage to the Government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill. The amendment, supported by Labour, Liberal Democrat and Crossbench Peers, set out 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. The Bishop of Durham supported the amendment and his speech is below. 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 amendment was not put to a vote.
The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, I would like to tell two stories that illustrate why I believe two of these exemptions are important. A good friend of mine and his wife were unable to have children, and they put themselves forward as adoptive parents. They went through the rigorous process—this was a few years ago—and with great pride entered a room with several of us who had our own children and presented a piece of paper that said, “I have been authorised to become a parent in a way that none of you ever have”. Continue reading “Welfare Reform Bill: Bishop of Durham supports 2 child limit exemptions”
On the 27th January 2016 the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, spoke to support an amendment to the Government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill. The amendment, in the name of Lord Low of Dalston, would negative a reduction in the Work Related Activity Group of the Employment and Support Allowance. The Bishop highlighted the likely impact on disabled people.
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, as I said in Committee, if this reduction in benefits for the disabled is about incentivising work rather than simply cutting costs from the benefit budget, I support the Government’s intention. However, the way in which they are going about the task to cut ESA WRAG and its universal credit counterparts is misguided. Clearly, other noble Lords agree with that. For that reason, I am inclined to support the removal of Clauses 13 and 14. Continue reading “Welfare Reform Bill: Bishop of St Albans supports move to halt cuts to Employment and Support Allowance”
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.
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”
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”
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”
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’”
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.
The Church of England in Parliament 
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