Category: Speeches

Speeches delivered in debates in the Lords and Commons

Bishop of Salisbury welcomes Paris climate change agreement

On 15th December 2015 a statement from the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change on the Paris Climate Change Summit was repeated in the House of Lords. The Bishop of Salisbury was amongst those who responded:

SalisburyThe Lord Bishop of Salisbury: My Lords, I, too, congratulate the Minister on the achievements in Paris and the part that the UK Government played. The faith communities organised, among those from the wider public sphere, to gather in Paris. Forty-four pilgrims walked from London; seven walked from the Danish-German border; and 22 cycled from Copenhagen. As they travelled on the journey to Paris, they gathered with them the support of the communities through which they travelled and in which meetings were held. This culminated last week with the presentation of a petition, with signatures from 1.83 million people, to Christiana Figueres and President Hollande by 20 of us in the faith communities. This is a deal that many people wanted. Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of the UN, said that it was the most complex and largest talks he had ever been part of. The sense of achievement is therefore very great in having pulled off the Paris agreement. The UK’s contribution through climate finance was particularly significant.

Continue reading “Bishop of Salisbury welcomes Paris climate change agreement”

Bishop of Bristol calls for greater priority on standards and funding for residential care

On 10th December 2015 the House of Lords debated a motion from  Baroness Wheeler “That this House takes note of the quality and viability of the residential care sector in the light of the Government’s decision to delay the implementation of the care cost cap.” The Bishop of Bristol, Rt Revd Mike Hill, spoke in the debate, calling for Government to give more priority to residential care standards and funding.

Bishop of Bristol June 2015The Lord Bishop of Bristol: My Lords, I join other Members of your Lordships’ House in thanking the noble Baroness for securing this debate. I admired her high-paced delivery of a lot of information without losing any clarity. Like the noble Baroness, I hope that this will not become a debate where we just trade statistics across the House, because in the end, as the noble Lord, Lord Filkin, has just drawn our attention to, this is about people and their lives, and therefore it is a matter that should be, and is, of great concern to us all.

If I stand in my bathroom and look out across the fields in north Bristol, I see the shell of Winterbourne View standing there as a testimony of what can go wrong with residential care when the business model is bust and the whole thing falls apart. It pains me to look at that building day by day. Continue reading “Bishop of Bristol calls for greater priority on standards and funding for residential care”

Second Estates Commissioner leads debate on reforming marriage registration certificates

On 8th December 2015 the Second Church Estates Commissioner, Rt Hon Caroline Spelman MP, held a debate in Westminster Hall about the reform of marriage registration certificates. Mrs Spelman said that certificates should be updated to bear mothers’ as well as fathers’ names and that the process ought also to be part of a wider overhaul of the registration system. She announced her intention to bring forward a Private Member’s Bill to that effect and that an internal consultation within the Church had shown support for the proposal. Her remarks introducing the debate and responding to others are reproduced below, but the full debate can be read in Hansard here.

 

SpelmanMarriagedebate081215 bMrs Caroline Spelman (Meriden) (Con): I beg to move,

That this House has considered marriage registration certificates.

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Brady. The latest intelligence that I heard is that we might have a vote at 2.45 pm, but of course we are on a running three-line Whip, so we will just have to see.

I am happy to have secured a Westminster Hall debate on this important subject. Since 1837—the beginning of Queen Victoria’s reign—marriage certificates in England and Wales have included the names of the spouses’ fathers, but not their mothers. I know that I am not alone in finding this state of affairs unacceptable in our modern society. Indeed, the Prime Minister said as much in August 2014.

The issue has attracted calls for reform from many Members: the hon. Member for Brighton, Pavilion (Caroline Lucas) has tabled two early-day motions on the subject, each of which attracted 100 signatures; a petition on change.org was signed by more than 70,000 members of the public; and the hon. Member for Neath (Christina Rees) has introduced a private Member’s Bill in an attempt to secure the inclusion of mothers’ names on marriage certificates. I believe that the Second Reading of that Bill is scheduled for 22 January, and it underlines the point that this is clearly an issue that concerns Members from across the House and requires urgent attention and reform.

The Church of England recently held an internal consultation exercise of archdeacons and legal officials to gauge the views of the clergy about changing the way we do marriage registration. It received an overwhelmingly positive response. It cannot be that difficult to change the format of marriage certificates so that the mothers’ details can be captured, can it? Continue reading “Second Estates Commissioner leads debate on reforming marriage registration certificates”

Bishop of Portsmouth speaks on floods

On 7th December 2015 a statement from the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on flooding in the north of England was repeated in the House of Lords. The Bishop of Portsmouth responded:

BishPortsspeechtaxcreditsThe Lord Bishop of Portsmouth: My Lords, I apologise to the House and in particular to the noble Baroness, Lady Parminter, and the Minister for my earlier ill-timed intervention. I add an expression of my compassion and sympathy, and the assurance of my prayers, to all those whose lives and livelihoods have been affected and particularly to the families of those who died.

The right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Carlisle lives in Keswick so has seen for himself the terrible problems caused by these storms. I know that the House will appreciate that he cannot be in his place today. In the past 10 years we have seen in Cumbria three so-called once-in-a-lifetime flooding events. Does the Minister believe that there may be a category problem here, and that some redefinition may be appropriate? Continue reading “Bishop of Portsmouth speaks on floods”

Bishop of Portsmouth speaks on Strategic Defence and Security Review

On 3rd December, 2015 the House of Lords debated a motion from Lord Attlee “that this House takes note of the United Kingdom’s role in supporting international security and stability in the light of the strategic defence and security review.” The Bishop of Portsmouth, Rt Revd Christopher Foster, spoke in the debate. His speech is below, alongside an extract from the Minister’s response.

BishPortsspeechtaxcredits

 Lord Bishop of Portsmouth: My Lords, even before we reach the halfway point of this debate, a range of significant and important matters have been raised. Some merit much more substantial consideration—for example, international partnerships and relationships, the deliverability of counterterrorism and the cyberterrorism agendas, and the huge importance of diplomatic presence and influence. To these I add the projected development of the delegated model. Continue reading “Bishop of Portsmouth speaks on Strategic Defence and Security Review”

Bishop of Portsmouth responds to Autumn Statement on the economy

On 3rd December 2015 the House of Lords debated the Chancellor’s Spending Review and Autumn Statement. The Bishop of Portsmouth, Rt Revd Christopher Foster, spoke in the debate.

 

14.04.09 Portsmouth maiden speech 2

The Lord Bishop of Portsmouth: My Lords, the Chancellor in his Statement in the other place described this as a Government who do big things. I begin by acknowledging with gratitude the big decision to retract the proposals to alter the tax credit thresholds and taper rate. I spoke from these Benches not many weeks ago when we were assured that the Chancellor was listening. It would be possible to say more about that journey of listening leading to this big decision, but that might be churlish. I simply welcome the announcement. Continue reading “Bishop of Portsmouth responds to Autumn Statement on the economy”

Bishop of Coventry speaks in Lords debate on action against ISIL in Syria

On 2nd December 2015 the Bishop of Coventry, Rt Revd Christopher Cocksworth, spoke during the House of Lords debate on ISIL in Syria. The full text of his speech is below. The Archbishop of Canterbury also spoke in the debate.

Bp Coventry May 2015The Lord Bishop of Coventry: My Lords, coming from Coventry, a city bound in solidarity of suffering with bombed cities in Europe, I am kept in daily remembrance of the costs of military action, especially to civilians. Against such costs, the benefits must be clear and the chances of success especially high. We all agree that the evil of Daesh needs to be stopped, but will extending strikes from Iraq into Syria do it? Continue reading “Bishop of Coventry speaks in Lords debate on action against ISIL in Syria”

Second Church Estates commissioner speaks in House of Commons Syria debate

On the 2nd December 2015 the Second Church Estates Commissioner, Rt Hon. Caroline Spelman MP, spoke in the House of Commons debate on action against ISIL in Syria. Mrs Spelman highlighted the need for a comprehensive strategy, which needed to included a theological, ideological response, not just military and humanitarian. The subsequent vote on the Government’s motion was passed by 397 to 223. Mrs Spelman voted with the Government. Her speech is reproduced below:

CarolineMrs Caroline Spelman (Meriden) (Con): There is an important religious dimension to this debate and faith leaders shape public opinion, so I thought it might be helpful if I shared with the House the views expressed by the Church of England on the subject.

At a meeting of the General Synod last week, a motion on the migrant crisis called unanimously upon the Government,

“to work with international partners in Europe and elsewhere to help establish safe and legal routes to places of safety, including this country, for refugees who are vulnerable and at severe risk.”

Continue reading “Second Church Estates commissioner speaks in House of Commons Syria debate”

Archbishop of Canterbury speaks in Lords debate on action against ISIL in Syria

On the 2nd December 2015 the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Revd and Rt Hon. Justin Welby, spoke during the House of Lords debate on ISIL in Syria. The Archbishop’s speech is reproduced in full below and can be watched here. The Bishop of Coventry also spoke in the debate.

AbpCanterbury021215The Archbishop of Canterbury: My Lords, I add to the welcomes given to the noble Lord, Lord Hague of Richmond, and note his perfect timing in bringing his immeasurable wisdom and experience to our debates. I look forward very much to his contribution.

To my mind, the “just war” criteria have been met. However, while they are necessary, they are not by themselves sufficient in action of this kind, where we can end up doing the right thing in such a wrong way that it becomes the wrong thing. To my mind, there are three components that currently need more emphasis and are to some extent missing. In this role, through visiting all 38 provinces of the Anglican communion, through the constant contacts that we have with Muslim and Christian leaders in the region, as recently as three weeks ago in a conference at Lambeth Palace, I am constantly reminded that this is a global issue to which we are applying local solutions. Continue reading “Archbishop of Canterbury speaks in Lords debate on action against ISIL in Syria”

Bishop of Bristol highlights the effect of loneliness on health and wellbeing

On 26th November 2015 the House of Lords debated a motion from Lord Crisp, “that this House takes note of the case for building a health-creating society in the United Kingdom where all sectors contribute to creating a healthy and resilient population.” The Bishop of Bristol, Rt Revd Mike Hill, spoke in the debate:

Bishop of Bristol June 2015The Lord Bishop of Bristol: My Lords, I, too, am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Crisp, for introducing this debate and this very big idea into the Chamber. Already we start to see that the breadth of material that needs to be thought about in relation to creating a healthy society is indeed vast. I sat here for some of the debate thinking were I the Minister—God forbid—how I might respond to such a plethora of concerns that have been articulated. I wish him well with that.

 

Of course, what we cannot do, as several noble Lords have noted, is expect the Government to solve this on their own, although I think there is a major challenge involved in this for government. That is what I would call the alignment of policy—how do you align policy over a very wide range of areas in life in such a way that human well-being emerges from it? Continue reading “Bishop of Bristol highlights the effect of loneliness on health and wellbeing”