Oral & written questions in the Lords and Commons
The Bishop of Gloucester asked a question on the health needs of women in prison on 14th January 2025:
The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: My Lords, women in prison have very specific health needs. Will the new women’s justice board look at ensuring that health and social care services across the women’s estate are consistently gender-specific and sensitive to women’s protected characteristics?
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The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answers on 13th January 2025:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government how many people were treated by the NHS for gambling disorders in (1) 2019, (2) 2020, (3) 2021, (4) 2022, (5) 2023, and (6) 2024.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about mental health treatment for gambling addiction”The Bishop of Norwich asked a question on efforts to deliver medical supplies to the Al-Ali Hospital in Gaza on 8th January 2025:
The Lord Bishop of Norwich: My Lords, three days before Hamas’s horrendous attacks on Israel I was in Gaza visiting the Anglican Al-Ahli Hospital. That hospital was struck again on 29 December by an Israeli artillery shell—the fifth strike it has had. Earlier this afternoon, I asked the archbishop in Jerusalem for an update and he provided me with a list of things that are urgently needed by his medical director at that hospital. They include antibiotics, anaesthesia drugs, sterile gloves, plaster of Paris, surgical knives, abdominal swabs and much more. All of that is in a container that has been in Amman for two months, held up because the Israeli Government will not allow it in. What might His Majesty’s Government do to try to enable that medical equipment to get to the Al-Ahli Hospital urgently?
Continue reading “Bishop of Norwich asks about supply of medical items to Al-Ali Hospital in Gaza”The Bishop of Norwich asked a question on police action in cases of institutional abuse on 8th January 2025:
The Lord Bishop of Norwich: My Lords, recent events have rightly turned the spotlight on the Church of England’s record around safeguarding. Those of us on these Benches are highly committed to listening to survivors and bringing about the further institutional and cultural changes that need to be made, beyond the enormous progress that has been made over the past 10 years. What assurance can the Minister give that the police will act on information that they receive, which, it is alleged, was not the case in 2013, when the horrendous crimes of John Smyth were correctly reported to them?
Continue reading “Bishop of Norwich asks about police action in cases of institutional abuse”The Bishop of Leicester asked a question on reasonable adjustments for those with disabilities in the workforce on 9th January 2025, during a discussion on assessments of eligibility for benefits claimants:
The Lord Bishop of Leicester: My Lords, the Government have made clear their ambition to get more people with health conditions and disabilities into work. What plans are in place to ensure employers consistently implement the reasonable adjustments required of them in the Equality Act and do not discriminate against disabled people?
Continue reading “Bishop of Leicester asks about reasonable adjustments in the workplace”On 7th January 2025, the Bishop of St Albans asked a question on threats to food production from extreme weather events such as flooding:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, the UK Food Security Report, published on 11 December, identified extreme weather events as major threat to good food production, and therefore a risk to our own national security. The Minister has just been talking about cross-departmental work. Can she assure the House that, as the Government develop the national food security strategy, they will liaise with the food resilience task force? This all needs joined-up thinking if we are going to guarantee our security.
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The Bishop of St Albans asked a question on digital exclusion in rural areas on 7th January 2025, following a government statement on health and adult social care reform:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I am grateful to His Majesty’s Government for trying to get cross-party agreement on this really important issue; it is important that it does not get lost in party politics. It is good to hear about the improvements to the NHS app, which is working quite well in some areas already. However, some people are digitally excluded, and there is a lack of connectivity in rural areas. How are we going to ensure that these groups are not excluded as we go forward with this important work?
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The Bishop of Southwark asked a question on the value of ongoing membership of the ECHR on, particularly pertaining to the continuation of the Belfast agreement, on 7th January 2025:
The Lord Bishop of Southwark: My Lords, does the Minister agree that the benefit of ongoing membership of the ECHR is, among other things, that it is vital for the continuation of the Belfast agreement?
Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede (Lab, MoJ): I thank the right reverend Prelate for that question. He is right that the Good Friday agreement is underpinned by the convention, and it is important that that should continue.
The Bishop of Southwark asked a question on mandatory space standards in housing construction on 6th January 2025:
The Lord Bishop of Southwark: My Lords, many in the House will wish the Government well in their ambitious commitment to housebuilding, but in terms of the National Planning Policy Framework, will the Minister outline how the social objectives of the framework are guaranteed and monitored, specifically
“accessible services and open spaces that reflect current and future needs and support communities’ health, social and cultural well-being”?
As regards well-being, will the Minister further consider restoring mandatory space standards for the construction size of British homes?
Continue reading “Bishop of Southwark asks about space standards in housing”The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answers on 6th January 2025:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government
The Church of England in Parliament 
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