Oral & written questions in the Lords and Commons
The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 8th February 2023:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of any security threat posed by the collection of biometric data by direct-to-consumer DNA testing ancestry companies.
Lord Murray of Blidworth: The Home Office has made no such assessment.
The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answers on 8th February 2023:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with (1) the EU, and (2) other pork export markets, regarding regionalisation in the event of an African swine fever outbreak in the UK.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about African Swine Fever”The Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham asked a question on support for small and rural schools on 7th February 2023, during a debate on the risk of school buildings collapsing being raised to “critical – very likely” in the Department for Education’s Consolidated annual report and accounts.
The Lord Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham: My Lords, the latest guidance from the DfE on reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete requires regular visual surveys of school buildings. In my diocese in Nottinghamshire there are many smaller, mainly rural schools that are unable to employ site managers who can undertake these surveys. They have to rely on head teachers and staff to make the necessary ongoing visual inspections. Can the Minister say what assistance can be provided to the teaching and leadership teams, particularly in smaller schools, where the budget is already under considerable pressure?
Continue reading “Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham asks about safety in school buildings”The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 7th February 2023:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of their review into contractual practice in the UK pig sector.
Lord Benyon (Con): A public consultation was conducted between July and October 2022 which invited views from the pig industry about potential improvements to fairness and transparency. The consultation received a very positive level of engagement with responses from individuals and organisations across the supply chain.
The Government will publish a Summary of Responses, outlining main findings and next steps, in the coming months. Any actions arising as a result of the consultation will be developed alongside industry with the close involvement of stakeholders.
The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 7th February 2023:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what is the value of UK direct (1) imports, and (2) exports, to Somalia.
Baroness Penn (Con): HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) is responsible for the collection and publication of data on imports and exports of goods to and from the UK. HMRC releases this information monthly, as a National Statistic called the Overseas Trade in Goods Statistics (OTS), which is available via their dedicated website. From this website, it is possible to build your own data tables based upon bespoke search criteria.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about trade with Somalia”The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 7th February 2023:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what recent assessment they have made of the Chinese surveillance companies (1) Dahua, and (2) Hikvision; what assessment they have made of any links between those companies and human rights abuses in the Xinjiang province; and what assessment they have made of whether they constitute a security threat to the UK.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about links between Chinese surveillance companies and human rights abuses”The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answers on 7th February 2023:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government how much pork was (1) exported, and (2) imported, in the years (a) 2022, (b) 2021, (c) 2020, and (d) 2019.
Baroness Penn (Con): HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) is responsible for the collection and publication of data on imports and exports of goods to and from the UK. HMRC releases this information monthly, as a National Statistic called the Overseas Trade in Goods Statistics (OTS), which is available via their dedicated website.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about overseas meat trading”The Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham asked a question about the adequacy of support for bereaved children and families on 6th January 2023, during a debate on available resources for bereaved children in schools:
The Lord Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham: My Lords, the Church of England educates over 1 million children in its schools and has produced highly accessible guidance and training for its school leaders on supporting students and families through grief, bereavement and loss. Recognising in particular the barriers to learning and flourishing that trauma may cause, would the Minister meet with the Church of England’s education team to see whether these outstanding resources could in fact help other students, teachers and families across the country?
Baroness Barran (Con): I thank the right reverend Prelate for the invitation; I would be delighted to meet with them.
The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 6th February 2023:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government how many reported instances of stop-and-search occurred in Hertfordshire in (1) 2022, (2) 2021, (3) 2020, and (4) 2019.
Lord Sharpe of Epsom (Con): The Home Office collects and publishes stop and search data on a financial year basis. The table below shows the number of stop and searches recorded by Hertfordshire Constabulary in the last four financial years. This includes searches under section 1 of the Policing and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (and associated legislation) and section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about reported instances of stop and search in Hertfordshire”
The Bishop of London received the following written answer on 3rd February 2023:
The Lord Bishop of London asked His Majesty’s Government whether their new Major Conditions Strategy will include the content of their unpublished Health Disparities White Paper.
Lord Markham (Con): The Major Conditions Strategy will consider major conditions in the round, including disparities due to geography and other factors. Many stakeholders have already responded to government consultations on mental health, dementia, health disparities and cancer. We will draw on the insights and evidence provided through these processes and the Department will set out opportunities to contribute further in due course.
The Church of England in Parliament 
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