The Bishop of Gloucester received the following written answer on 1st November 2022:
The Lord Bishop of Gloucester asked His Majesty’s Government whether, and if so when, the Department for Work and Pensions will resume the sharing of Healthy Start take-up data with the Department of Health and Social Care.
Baroness Stedman-Scott (Con): DWP are working with DHSC to make data available by the end of 2022.
The Bishop of Coventry received the following written answers on 1st November 2022:
The Lord Bishop of Coventry asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the two-year conflict in Ethiopia on the (1) nutritional status, (2) mortality rates, and (3) educational standards, of children in Tigray.
Continue reading “Bishop of Coventry asks about conflict in Ethiopia and Tigray”
The Bishop of Southwark received the following written answer on 1st November 2022:
The Lord Bishop of Southwark asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the agreement reached in Algiers on 13 October by 14 Palestinian factions to hold legislative and presidential elections within 12 months in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and in Gaza; and what plans they have, if any, to offer assistance to that end.
Continue reading “Bishop of Southwark asks about Palestinian elections”
The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 1st November 2022:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what progress they have made on their plans to scrap the new affordability rules for housing developments.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about affordable housing”
On 31st October 2022, the House of Lords discussed a question for short debate tabled by Lord Lexden, asking whether the government planned to review the powers of the Police and Crime Commissioners. The Bishop of Southwark spoke in the debate:
The Lord Bishop of Southwark: My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Lexden, for securing this debate and setting out for us with his habitual clarity the issues at hand. I am particularly saddened to hear that the good name of a distinguished former Prime Minister, Sir Edward Heath, has been traduced in the way that the noble Lord has described. However, I wish to approach this debate with a different focus.
Any hierarchy, any delivery of service, any public-facing organisation is fraught with multiple expectations and with the frailties and capacities of those who lead. For instance, diocesan bishops have wide discretion but are constrained by resource, custom, law, synodical structures and vocation.
The issues around effective delivery and of accountability in policing are very old. Historically, constables were at the direction of magistrates, who continued to sit on watch committees and police authorities until recent times. However, the growth in the size of forces and their operational complexity fuelled a sense of operational independence, away from political interference and amateur direction. It also allowed for co-operation at a national level where crime issues crossed county borders. Direct local accountability was seen to threaten professionalism, and it threatened the fight against crime nationally.
Continue reading “Bishop of Southwark speaks about reviewing the powers of Police and Crime Commissioners”On 31st October 2022, the House of Lords debated the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill in the committee stage. The Bishop of Coventry spoke in the debate in support of various amendments, with reference to use of religious and spiritual spaces:
The Lord Bishop of Coventry: My Lords, I support Amendments 5 to 7 in particular. I shall follow on from the comments of the noble Lord, Lord Mann, because I had similar concerns about unintended consequences. I wonder whether your Lordships would mind me sharing some rambling thoughts that have come through my mind. I was not going to, but the reference by the noble Lord, Lord Triesman, to nothing before 1680—I think it was 1680—strengthened me.
In many countries in Europe, today is Reformation Day. I happened to be in Dresden yesterday, where you cannot help but see the statue of Martin Luther, which I was admiring. That is not irrelevant to these discussions. The history of academic freedom in Europe—freedom of expression and of religion—will have different views about the Reformation, but I cannot help celebrating the fact that, 500 years later, the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran World Federation said that they agreed over the doctrine of justification by faith, which was the great thing that divided the Churches at that time. As this fascinating debate has continued, I could not help thinking that, if there had not been a suppression of academic freedom at the time, there may not have been that great bust-up, which caused a lot of tearing to society and Church. I simply share that to reinforce that which we are all committed to—academic freedom and freedom of speech—and to recognise that institutions did not always get it right. Certainly, the Church has not.
Continue reading “Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill: Bishop of Coventry speaks in support of amendments”The Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham received the following written answer on 31st October 2022:
The Lord Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham asked His Majesty’s Government when they plan to introduce the Renters Reform Bill; and, given the increase in mortgage costs may lead to tenants spending longer in rented accommodation, what consideration they have given to bringing forward their timetable for seeking to get the Bill passed.
Continue reading “Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham asks about Renters Reform Bill”The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 31st October 2022:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what progress they have made with their plans to end section 21 eviction notices.
Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con): Everyone deserves to live in a safe and secure home. The Prime Minister has committed to the ban on Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions to protect tenants. Ensuring a fair deal for renters remains a priority for the government and we will legislate in this Parliament.
The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 31st October 2022:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the recent treatment of Christian minorities in Iran.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con): Promoting the right to freedom of religion or belief for all is one of the UK’s longstanding human rights priorities.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about treatment of Christians in Iran”
The Bishop of Bristol received the following written answer on 31st October 2022:
The Lord Bishop of Bristol asked His Majesty’s Government when they will appoint the next Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner.
Lord Sharpe of Epsom: The role of the Anti-Slavery Commissioner (IASC), as set out in the 2015 Modern Slavery Act, is to encourage good practice in the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of slavery and human trafficking offences and the identification of victims.
The process to recruit a new IASC follows the principles set out within the Cabinet Office Governance Code on Public Appointments.
A decision on the appointment is under consideration.
The Church of England in Parliament 
You must be logged in to post a comment.