Questions – Page 60 – The Church of England in Parliament

Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham asks about supported lodgings provision

The Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham received the following written answer on 2nd December 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the recommendation in the report The Voices of Supported Lodgings: Strong foundations for our future, published by Homes for Good and Safe Families on 16 October, that the Government should introduce a ‘supported lodgings lead’ within every regional care co-operative with responsibility for supported lodgings provision.

Bishop of Sheffield asks about educational attainment gap

The Bishop of Sheffield received the following written answer on 2nd December 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Sheffield asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the finding in the Joseph Rowntree Foundation report UK Poverty 2024: The essential guide to understanding poverty in the UK, published on 23 January, that of all entrants into first class undergraduate degrees in 2021–22, “just one per cent had a parent who was long-term unemployed or had never worked”; and what steps they are taking to reduce this educational attainment gap.

Bishop of Winchester asks about mental health support for detained asylum seekers

On 28th November 2024, the Bishop of Winchester asked a question on the provision of mental health support for asylum seekers housed at the former MOD site in Wethersfield

The Lord Bishop of Winchester: My Lords, reports by Doctors of the World and Médecins Sans Frontières speak of the high levels of psychological distress experienced by many of the residents who are accommodated at Wethersfield, and this is corroborated by those from the diocese of Chelmsford volunteering on site. Can the Minister say what access there is to therapeutic mental health support on site, especially for those suffering from complex conditions such as PTSD?

Church Commissioners Questions: Church-owned Hospices, Historic Places of Worship, Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme, People Housebound due to Disability: Church Support, Historic Church Preservation: Northumberland, Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza

On 28th November 2024, the Second Church Estates Commissioner, Marsha De Cordova MP, gave the following answers to questions from MPs in the House of Commons:

Bishop of St Albans asks about support for Rohingya refugees

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 28th November 2024:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government how much of their recently announced £10.3 million of additional funding to Bangladesh is dedicated to supporting Rohingya refugees.

Bishop of St Albans asks about issues affecting women and girls

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answers on 28th November 2024:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what steps they will take to ensure better co-ordination of guidance given to medical practitioners, teachers, and faith leaders on reporting and protecting girls from female genital mutilation.

Bishop of Winchester asks about recognition of Cornish regional identity

The Bishop of Winchester asked a question on government plans to recognise Cornish identity within the future Council of the Nations and Regions on 27th November 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Winchester: My Lords, given that the UK Government have recognised the distinctive identity of the Cornish through the Council of Europe’s Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, can the Minister say whether there are any plans to recognise that identity within the Council of the Nations and Regions, irrespective of whether they vote for a mayor? I note that the Cornish do not take kindly to being called English.

Bishop of St Albans asks about prosecutions for female genital mutilation

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 27th November 2024:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what steps they will take to increase prosecution rates against those who have committed offences relating to female genital mutilation.

Lord Hermer (Lab, Attorney General): This Government has committed to halve violence against women and girls in the next decade and addressing female genital mutilation (FGM) is critical to achieving this.

Bishop of Winchester asks about support for persecuted Christians

The Bishop of Winchester received the following written answer on 27th November 2024:

The Bishop of Winchester asked His Majesty’s Government what plans they have to implement the 22 recommendations set out in the Bishop of Truro’s independent review of Foreign and Commonwealth Office support for persecuted Christians, published in July 2019; and what is their timescale for doing so.

Bishop of St Albans asks about impact of flooding on farming communities

The Bishop of St Albans asked a question on the impact of flooding on farming communities on 26th November 2025, following a government statement on the aftermath of Storm Bert:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I ask the Minister to return to our farming communities. We know that this is a complex problem and we rely on our farmers to work very collaboratively with all sorts of agencies to try to prevent the water coming down into vulnerable areas. As we have noted in the last few days, our farming community is already quite vulnerable and feeling very nervous, particularly because there are some reports that the Countryside Stewardship higher-tier scheme may not open until mid-2025. It is another thing that may affect some of our farmers. Will the Minister commit to ensuring that her department does everything it can to bring the application dates of the Countryside Stewardship higher-tier fund forward as much as possible, to help our farmers?

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