Category: Questions

Oral & written questions in the Lords and Commons

Bishop of Chelmsford responds to Government statement on race disparity audit

On 10th October 2017 a Government statement about the new race disparity audit was repeated in the House of Lords, the Bishop of Chelmsford, Rt Revd Stephen Cottrell, responded to the statement: 

The Lord Bishop of Chelmsford: My Lords, although, let me be clear, the Church of England has nothing to teach anyone else on this subject—our record is not a good one—in the diocese of Chelmsford, where I serve, which includes the east London boroughs, which ​have some of the most diverse communities in Europe, we have found that of course there is racism and xenophobia but there is also what has been explained to me as unconscious bias.

It is not quite the same as racism; it is those things which prevent us from seeing each other as clearly as we need to. Both in the Church of England generally and in the diocese where I serve, we have done a lot of training over the past couple of years to help people to see their own unconscious bias towards people, and this is already bearing fruit in the church context with black and global majority people coming forward into positions. I wondered whether the Government had looked at that both for us and in wider society to try to move the debate on beyond the binary thing of, “Somebody is a racist or they are not”. Continue reading “Bishop of Chelmsford responds to Government statement on race disparity audit”

Support for LGBT people – Church Commissioners

On 10th October 2017 the Second Church Estates Comissioner, Rt Hon Dame Caroline Spelman MP, answered two written questions from Ben Bradshaw MP, about homophobic prejudice and violence and support for LGBT people:

Mr Ben Bradshaw:

(i) To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England has taken as a result of the Anglican Primates’ statement of January 2016 on homophobic prejudice and violence and the rejection of criminal sanctions against same-sex attracted people.

(ii) To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England has taken to prevent the imposition of (a) the death penalty and (b) other criminal sanctions on LGBT people on account of their sexuality.

Continue reading “Support for LGBT people – Church Commissioners”

Reformation 500 – Church Commissioners Answer

On 9th October 2017 the Second Church Estates Commissioner, Rt Hon Dame Caroline Spelman MP, answered a question from Mark Hendrick MP about the 500th anniversary of the start of the Reformation in Europe.

Mr Mark Hendrick(Preston): To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what events and activities the Diocese of Blackburn is undertaking to mark the Quincentenary of the nailing of Ninety-five Theses by Martin Luther on the door of All Saints’ Church, Wittenberg, on 31 October 1517.

Dame Caroline Spelman: Church of England dioceses are marking the 500th Anniversary of the beginning of the Reformation in Europe and parishes are being encourage to commemorate the anniversary in a variety of ways. For example in my own parish of Knowle, a sermon series will be held.

Information on some of the main events being run across the Church can be seen here: https://www.churchofengland.org/about-us/work-other-churches/reformation-anniversary.aspx

Continue reading “Reformation 500 – Church Commissioners Answer”

Bishop of Leeds asks about British arms sales to Saudi Arabia, radicalisation and religious freedom

On 26th and 27th September, the Bishop of Leeds, Rt Revd Nick Baines, received written answers to four questions of Government about Saudi Arabia: on religious freedom, radicalisation & British arms sales.

(i) To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of freedom of religion or belief in Saudi Arabia.

(ii) To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they made to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia, Abdel al-Jubeir, when he visited London on 4 September, concerning religious freedom, eliminating discriminatory enforcement of laws against religious minorities, and promoting respect and tolerance for minority Muslim and non-Muslim religious practices and beliefs.

(iii) To ask Her Majesty’s Government what guarantees, if any, they sought from the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia, Abdel al-Jubeir, when he visited London on 4 September, that British arms sales to Saudi Arabia will only be used in accordance with international humanitarian law.

(iv) To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they made to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia, Abdel al-Jubeir, when he visited London on 4 September, concerning reports of financial and logistical support provided by Saudi Arabia to Daesh and other radical Sunni groups in the Middle East and Asia.  Continue reading “Bishop of Leeds asks about British arms sales to Saudi Arabia, radicalisation and religious freedom”

Bishop of St Albans asks Government about affordable housing

On 25th & 27th September 2017 the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, received answers to two questions about house building:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the impact of the removal of the requirement for developers to provide a certain proportion of affordable housing in developments of ten homes or fewer on the number of small and medium-sized enterprise builders over the last two years.

Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about affordable housing”

Bishop of Coventry asks about human rights, development aid and sanctions towards the military in Burma

Between 18th-25th September 2017 the Bishop of Coventry, Rt Revd Christopher Cocksworth, received answers to five questions about Burma, on human rights violations, UK humanitarian aid and sanctions against the Burmese military:

The Lord Bishop of Coventry:

(i) To ask Her Majesty’s Government what humanitarian assistance they are providing to help alleviate the emerging humanitarian crisis in Rakhine State in Burma.

(ii) To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to the suspension of military assistance, including training, for the Burmese army.

(iii) To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to the introduction of financial and travel sanctions against senior Burmese military officials following the Burmese military’s recent offensive in Rakhine State.

(iv) To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Burma to engage with existing United Nations Human Rights Council mechanisms and address reports of severe human rights violations in Rakhine State.

(v) To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assistance and support they are providing the government of Burma and other parties in Burma to de-escalate the crisis in Rakhine State.

Continue reading “Bishop of Coventry asks about human rights, development aid and sanctions towards the military in Burma”

Bishop of St Albans asks Government about regulation of online gambling

On 20th September 2017 the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, received written answers to two questions about the regulation of online gambling:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans:

(i) To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to regulate the use of electronic data by betting firms and their affiliates to target online advertising at specific groups.

(ii) To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to incorporate a review of online gambling into the Triennial Review of Gaming Machine Stake and Prize Limits. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about regulation of online gambling”

Bishop of Leeds asks Government about impact of sanctions, human rights and church demolitions in Sudan

On 18th and 20th September 2017 the Bishop of Leeds, Rt Revd Nick Baines, received written answers to five questions about Sudan, on the humanitarian impact of sanctions, the demolition of churches and the human rights situation:

 

The Lord Bishop of Leeds:

(i) To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the humanitarian impact of sanctions on the people of Sudan.

(ii) To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of the United States regarding the suspension or refinement of sanctions on Sudan.

(iii) To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the efficacy of sanctions on Sudan.

(iv)  To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the human rights situation and current levels of humanitarian access in Sudan.

(v) To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Sudan regarding the demolition of churches built on land that has since been designated for buildings other than places of worship.

Continue reading “Bishop of Leeds asks Government about impact of sanctions, human rights and church demolitions in Sudan”

Bishop of St Albans asks Government about help for those in debt

On 18th September 2017 Lord Bates answered two written questions from the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, on credit card debt and the need for a statutory ‘breathing space’ scheme.

Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to introduce measures to prevent the automatic increase of credit card limits. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about help for those in debt”

Bishop of St Albans asks Government when housing strategy will be implemented

On 14th September 2017 the Bishop of St Albans asked a question he had tabled to Government about the Government’s housing strategy. His question and follow-up are below, as are the follow up questions from other Members of the House:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to implement the recommendations contained in the Housing White Paper, Fixing our broken housing market.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government and Northern Ireland Office (Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth) (Con): My Lords, housing is a priority for this Government. We are committed to ensuring radical and lasting reform to get homes built now and in future, and are delivering the changes needed to make that happen. For example, we have already launched a £2.3 billion ​fund, which we committed to in the White Paper, to provide essential infrastructure to support up to 100,000 new homes.

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, the consultation on the housing White Paper was published on 2 May and, as we know, it contained urgently needed measures to address the critical shortfall of housing here in the UK. When does the Minister expect the results of that consultation to be ready, and when can we expect a revised National Planning Policy Framework? Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government when housing strategy will be implemented”