Speeches – Page 9 – The Church of England in Parliament

Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill: Bishop of Lincoln moves safeguarding amendments on behalf of the Bishop of Manchester

The Bishop of Lincoln moved two amendments in place of the Bishop of Manchester on lifelong safeguarding for children in care during a debate on the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill on 19th June 2025:

The Lord Bishop of Lincoln:

146B: Clause 21, page 39, line 21, at end insert—

(e) to have due regard to the need to remove or minimise the disadvantages suffered by looked-after children and relevant young persons.”Member’s explanatory statement

The amendment seeks to expand and strengthen Clause 21 by replacing the light-touch duty to be “alert to” their needs with a stronger requirement for public bodies to have “due regard” to eliminating disadvantage and to take reasonable steps to mitigate any harmful effects of their policies. The amendment intends to create a legally enforceable, lifelong safeguard for anyone who has ever been in care.

My Lords, I move the amendments in the name of the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Manchester. In relation to Amendment 146B, 120 councils around the country have already committed themselves voluntarily to embrace the “due regard” implementation, but this amendment intends to create a legally enforceable, legislative and lifelong safeguard across government for anyone who has ever been in care.

Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill: Bishop of Manchester supports amendments on safeguarding children’s rights

On 17th June 2025, the House of Lords debated the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. The Bishop of Manchester spoke in support of amendments to the bill that would ensure safeguards and limits on deprivation of liberty for children:

The Lord Bishop of Manchester: My Lords, I have added my name to a number of the amendments in this group; I could probably have added it to all of them. Like other noble Lords, I am very grateful for the work of the Nuffield Family Justice Observatory, which has been quoted several times. I am ignoring all the careful facts and figures I had prepared for this evening, because most of them have already been given by other noble Lords, and it is a principle here that we do not repeat what has already been said. Rather, I would like to speak to the broad principles and the moral case, and to be brief.

Asylum Support (Prescribed Period) Bill: Bishop of Chelmsford supports legislation

The Bishop of Chelmsford spoke in support of the Asylum Support (Prescribed Period) Bill [HL], a private member’s bill tabled by Baroness Lister of Burtersett, at committee on 13th June 2025:

The Lord Bishop of Chelmsford: My Lords, I am pleased to support the Private Member’s Bill of the noble Baroness, Lady Lister, on asylum support and her Amendments 1 and 2, which would enable the Government to extend the move-on period according to their plans and timetable. The Bill is extraordinarily well timed, with the move-on period pilot coming to a close and the Government having recently published their White Paper entitled Restoring Control over the Immigration System. As the Government reduce the backlog of asylum applications and speed up the process times of applications, I suggest that this Bill does not impede but rather supports the Government as they seek to build a well-managed asylum system with integration back at its heart.

At Second Reading, I spoke of why 28 days was simply not enough time for an individual with newly granted refugee status to locate new accommodation, try to find employment and navigate a welfare system. This should now be regarded as indisputable, given that an individual cannot even access universal credit before five weeks have passed, that the majority of landlords will not even let a property before a first payment has come in and that setting up a bank account is proving difficult with an e-visa alone. On this latter point, I hope that the Government will consider issuing guidance to banking services.

Bishop of Chichester speaks in debate on UK craft industry

On 12th June 2025, the Bishop of Chichester spoke in a short debate on the role of craft industries in the UK to highlight the contribution these people play to maintain churches and cathedrals:

The Lord Bishop of Chichester: My Lords, it is a great privilege to take part in this debate. I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Freyberg, for bringing it forward. I echo much of what was said by my right reverend friend the Bishop of Southwark and by the noble Lord, Lord Lingfield, with whom I worked at St Paul’s.

I would like to stress the importance of capacity for long-term funding in order that long-term planning can be undertaken by these fragile groups. I was disappointed that this morning there was no response from the Minister in the Statement on the spending review to indicate that there will be certainty about the future of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme beyond 2026, which is essential for so many churches, parishes and cathedrals, nor a review of the capping system of the VAT application, which once again destroys much of the benefit of knowing that there is funding ahead.

Bishop of Southwark speaks in debate on role of crafts industry

The Bishop of Southwark spoke in debate on the rile of craft industries in the UK on 12th June 2025, highlighting the role of the Church of England in supporting craft skills:

The Lord Bishop of Southwark: My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Freyberg, for securing this debate and for his expertise.

Like the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Chichester, who will speak later, I believe that cathedrals and churches are some of our nation’s most significant and tangible assets, shaping our history and identity, as well as being the beating hearts of our communities. I regret, therefore, that the Government’s decision to curb support for the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme affects our ability to maintain and renew this precious inheritance. I hope this has been recognised in the spending review.

Holocaust Memorial Bill: Bishop of Southwark supports amendment on building of learning centre

On 11th June 2025, the Bishop of Southwark spoke in support of an amendment to the Holocaust Memorial Bill tabled by Lord Russell of Liverpool, which would stipulate that: “No Learning Centre should be constructed underground in order that a Learning Centre be constructed of adequate size in line with the recommendation of the 2015 Prime Minister’s Holocaust Commission Report and in order to avoid detriment to Victoria Tower Gardens.”

The Lord Bishop of Southwark: My Lords, I support Amendment 2 in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Russell of Liverpool, as it encapsulates my concern. I intend to speak briefly. During the debate on ping-pong on the data Bill on 2 June, the noble Lord, Lord Rooker, referred to some pre-ministerial training administered in the days before he and colleagues entered government, which included a former senior civil servant saying:

“Whatever happens, it is never too late to avoid making a bad decision”.—[Official Report, 2/6/25; col. 498.]

Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill: Bishop of Manchester supports amendment on bereavement policies in schools

On 9th June 2025, the Bishop of Manchester spoke in support of an amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill tabled by Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle, which would establish a requirement for schools to have bereavement policies to support children affected by loss:

The Lord Bishop of Manchester: My Lords, I am grateful for the Bill as an opportunity to address a number of what we call adverse childhood experiences. I suspect that, given the lateness of the hour, we are not going to reach some of my amendments on care leavers that are scheduled for later. This group, particularly Amendment 171, deals with children who have experienced bereavement. Not much has been said about that in this short debate, so I will say a few words.

Border Security, Asylum, and Immigration Bill: Bishop of Southwark speaks at second reading

The Bishop of Southwark spoke at the second reading of the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill on 2nd June 2025, pointing out the need for resources involved in managing the immigration and asylum system, and the potential effects of further hard line approaches to immigration enforcement:

The Lord Bishop of Southwark: My Lords, the diocese in which I serve covers one of the most diverse parts of the country. Indeed, arguably, south London is one of the most ethnically diverse places in the world. This diversity is often represented in our churches, which have benefited, as has the rest of the country, from the great human fact of migration. It would be good to hear some recognition of this in government and Home Office statements.

It is worth stressing that the vast majority of migrants to this country come here properly under the Immigration Rules, and thus there is no proper sense in which their arrival and settlement can be described as uncontrolled. The Government of the day may, for good reasons of public policy, wish to alter the rules or introduce fresh primary legislation, but that does not mean that a system and process is not in place, that applications are not assessed and fees paid, and that the results do not match what Parliament has sanctioned.

Bishop of St Albans asks about carbon emissions

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 19th May 2025:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the report published on 22 April by Friends of the Earth International, Climate and biodiversity in freefall, particularly the finding that 78 per cent of the top 50 carbon offsetting projects are likely ineffective or worthless.

Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Bill: Bishop of Lichfield highlights concerns around social security

The Bishop of Lichfield spoke at the second reading of the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Bill on 15th May 2025, raising concerns regarding the impact of the bill on the social security system:

The Lord Bishop of Lichfield: My Lords, I am very glad to see the name of the noble Baroness, Lady Spielman, on the speakers’ list for this debate; I look forward to her maiden speech and her future contributions to this House.

We all need to acknowledge the understandable frustration, felt from government downwards, about waste in public spending and fraud perpetrated at the public’s expense. It is right that expenditure be managed carefully, ensuring that people receive support when they need it, and eliminating fraud and error within the system as far as that is possible.

At the encouragement of my right reverend friend the Bishop of Leicester, who much regrets that he cannot be in his place today, I will focus on the second limb of this Bill, which concerns individual claimants of social security. This is a matter of morality. To support people into work, where they are able; to ensure that people can enjoy an acceptable standard of living when they cannot work or to top up their low income; and to deliver a fair and sustainable social security system now and in the future: these are all moral imperatives. Addressing fraud and error—ensuring that government can recover money when required—is also a morally vital matter of maintaining public consent, which should be a welcome outcome of this proposed legislation. Put simply, our social security system must both be fair and be perceived as fair by the public.

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