On 9th May 2019 the Second Church Estates Commissioner, Rt Hon Dame Caroline Spelman MP, answered questions from MPs on the Bishop of Truro’s review into persecuted Christians overseas, the attacks on Christian worshipers in Sri Lanka, and fire safety in cathedrals. The exchanges follow:
Continue reading “Church Commissioner Questions: Persecuted Christians Review, Sri Lanka attacks, Cathedral Fire Safety”
Category: Questions
Oral & written questions in the Lords and Commons
Bishop of Rochester suggests shared learning forum to improve diversity in public appointments
On 9th May 2019 Lord Holmes of Richmond asked the Government “what steps they are taking to increase diversity in public appointments”. The Bishop of Rochester, Rt Revd James Langstaff, asked a follow-up question:
The Lord Bishop of Rochester: My Lords, I am conscious that these Benches may not embody everyone’s image of diversity. None the less, I was pleased to lead the final stages of the process by which these Benches were opened to women as well as men, although none of them is here today. I have also been chairing for the last five years a process within the Church where we are tasked with increasing the proportion of BME people in senior roles in the life of the Church. We have made some modest progress, though there is lots still to do. Nevertheless, we have learned that while legislation and processes are important, as has been indicated, so are culture, attitudes and bias. I wonder whether the Government might welcome some kind of forum within which quasi-public bodies might engage with public bodies so that we can share our learning on these matters. Continue reading “Bishop of Rochester suggests shared learning forum to improve diversity in public appointments”
Bishop of St Albans asks Government about NHS plan and gambling related harm
On 9th May 2019 the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, received a written answer to a question on the NHS and gambling related harm and rehabilitation:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: HL15360 To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Manzoor on 29 January (HL12939), when they expect the NHS to publish its “clear implementation framework” of the NHS Long Term Plan which would “set out how the commitments should be delivered by local systems and ensure transparency for patients and the public”. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about NHS plan and gambling related harm”
Bishop of Leeds asks Government about action against modern slavery at hand car washes
On 9th May 2019 the Bishop of Leeds, Rt Revd Nick Baines, received a written answer to three questions about forced labour exploitation in the hand car wash sector:The Lord Bishop of Leeds:
1. HL15278 To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the prevalence of forced labour exploitation in the hand car wash sector in England and Wales.
2. HL15279 To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to address forced labour exploitation in the hand car wash sector.
3. HL15280 To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the findings of the report by the University of Nottingham Rights Lab Safe Car Wash App Report, published on 7 April.
Bishop of Rochester welcomes protective security funding for places of worship
On 7th May 2019 Baroness Williams of Trafford repeated a Statement by the Home Secretary on protective security funding for places of worship. The Bishop of Rochester, Rt Revd James Langstaff, responded to the statement:
The Lord Bishop of Rochester: My Lords, I too am very grateful to the Minister for repeating the Statement from the other place. From these Benches, I welcome it and echo some of the things that have already been said by the noble Lord, Lord Rosser, and the noble Baroness, Lady Hamwee, not least about the wider context, although I recognise that this Statement has a limited focus.
The Minister has already observed the tragic events in Christchurch, Sri Lanka and San Diego. It seems to me that one of the learnings from those events is the impossibility of predicting where, or even when, a dreadful event might occur. With that in mind, I am particularly grateful for the broadening of the eligibility criteria in relation to potential grants from the fund, whereby it is now not necessary for places of worship to have experienced an incident of hate crime in order to make an application. That is an important loosening around the unpredictability of where things might occur.
Continue reading “Bishop of Rochester welcomes protective security funding for places of worship”
Bishops of St Albans and Southwark ask government to issue standards for biodegradable plastic bags
On 7th May 2019 Lord Dubs asked the Government “what their latest proposals are to reduce the use of plastics.”. The Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith and the Bishop of Southwark, Rt Revd Christopher Chessun, asked follow up questions:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, many consumers are now choosing to use biodegradable bags rather than plastic ones, believing these to be preferable, yet researchers from the University of Plymouth have shown that many of these bags are not in fact biodegradable. Will Her Majesty’s Government undertake to produce clear standards and guidelines so we can be sure that these are biodegradable and improve the environment, and that we are not misled?
Bishop of St Albans asks Government what is being done to tackle hare coursing and rural crime
On 2nd May 2019 the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, asked a question he had tabled, on rural crime. The answer, his follow-up, and those of other Members are reproduced below:
Farming Communities: Rural Crime
Question
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of rural crime on farming communities.
Bishop of St Albans asks whether police receive guidance or training on dealing with street preachers
On 1st May the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, received a written answer to a question on guidance to police about street preachers, and religious literacy training:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: HL15288 To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 3 April (HL14707), whether the Home Office provides any particular guidance to police officers in relation to freedom of speech and street preachers; whether police officers receive training on religious literacy; and if so, whether any such training is mandatory.Bishop of St Albans asks Government to investigate effect of two-child limit policy
On 30th April 2019 Baroness Massey of Darwen asked the Government “what plans they have to develop a cross-departmental action plan to address the conclusions and recommendations of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child’s assessment of the United Kingdom in 2016, in order to ensure that all public bodies act to protect and promote children’s rights.” The Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, asked a follow up question:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, the UNCRC states that the best interests of the child must be paramount in all decision making and yet evidence that our Benches are collecting shows that the two-child limit policy is having a substantially negative impact on those families affected by it. In the light of the Government’s obligations under UNCRC, will the Minister undertake to commission independent research into the impact of the two-child limit policy on those families which are affected by it?
Bishop of Durham asks Government about community sponsorship of refugees
On 25th April 2019 Baroness Sheehan asked the Government “what assessment they have made of the progress of the community sponsorship scheme in supporting resettled refugees in the United Kingdom.” The Bishop of Durham, Rt Revd Paul Butler, asked a follow-up question:
The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, I declare an interest as a trustee of Reset. Thanks to the work of Reset, the Global Refugee Sponsorship Initiative and others, community sponsorship is now being taken up more rapidly, as the Minister said, and explored in communities across the world. This growth underlines the importance of measuring and learning from the outcomes on sponsored refugees and the sponsoring community. What data does the Government collect? Will they make it public so that community sponsorship can keep growing in number and quality? Continue reading “Bishop of Durham asks Government about community sponsorship of refugees”
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