Bishop of St Albans asks about issues of freedom of religion and belief relating to vaccination

The Bishop of St Albans asked a question on the issue of strongly held religious beliefs against vaccination on 23rd June 2021, during a discussion on a Commons Urgent Question on the COVID-19 Events Research Programme:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, the Church of England has adopted a clear policy on encouraging people to be vaccinated. However, at the same time, like many organisations, we cater for a variety of people, some with strongly held ethical convictions and objections to the vaccine, covering issues from animal testing to the use of aborted foetal cells. What plans do Her Majesty’s Government have to uphold freedom of religion and belief and offer an alternative to vaccine certification for religious events?

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Bishop of Southwark asks about plans to increase UK diplomatic infrastructure

The Bishop of Southwark received the following written answer on 23rd June 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Southwark asked Her Majesty’s Government, further to their Global Britain in a Competitive Age: the Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy (CP403), published on 16 March, what plans they have to increase the UK’s (1) diplomatic presence, and (2) other infrastructure, around the globe.

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Bishop of St Albans asks about increasing transparency for tax liability

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 23rd June 2021:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked Her Majesty’s Government, further to the recent G7 global taxation agreement, what plans they have to require (1) public country-by-country reporting for UK based multinationals, and (2) enhanced tax reporting, to increase transparency and better ascertain the tax liabilities of UK multinationals.

Lord Agnew of Oulton (Con, Treasury): The Government is delighted to have secured G7 backing for the two-pillar solution being developed by the OECD to reform the international tax framework and the Government’s focus is on reaching final agreement with the G20 and OECD Inclusive Framework. A final agreement, when implemented, would help deal with the root of concerns about the taxation of multinationals, both as to where these corporations are taxed and as to the level at which they pay tax.

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Bishop of St Albans asks about child trust funds

The Bishop of St Albans asked a question on regulations surrounding child trust funds for children with learning disabilities on 22nd June 2021:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, may I press the Minister a little further? What plans do the Government have to work with the providers of child trust funds to develop a proactive strategy to advertise the need for parents of children with learning disabilities to apply to the Court of Protection in advance of the young adult’s child trust fund maturing? This is a really urgent matter, and we need the Government to be on the front foot.

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Bishop of Southwark asks about delays in issuing payment cards to asylum seekers

The Bishop of Southwark received the following written answer on 22nd June 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Southwark asked Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of delays in the issuing of the Aspen payment cards to asylum seekers.

Baroness Williams of Trafford (Con): The PrePaid Financial Services (PFS) solution is a well-established Mastercard pre-paid card used by organisations across the UK as well as abroad and has undergone over 5 months of rigorous testing to integrate with Home Office systems.

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Bishop of Gloucester asks about implementation of the Female Offender Strategy

The Bishop of Gloucester tabled a question on the progress of the government’s 2018 Female Offender Strategy on 21st June 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the progress towards the implementation of the Female Offender Strategy, published on 27 June 2018; and what plans they have, if any, to revise the timetable for its implementation.

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Bishop of Southwark asks about immigration of EU and Hong Kong nationals to the UK

The Bishop of Southwark received the following written answers on 21st June 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Southwark asked Her Majesty’s Government:

  • what assessment they have made of the increase in the number of EU citizens refused entry to the UK in the first quarter of 2021 compared to the same period in 2020.
  • how many EU citizens were detained on entry to the UK in the first quarter of 2021 compared to the same period in 2020; and what guidance they issue to immigration staff on making decisions about detention on entry.
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Bishop of St Albans asks about plans for gambling awareness during upcoming UEFA tournament

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 21st June 2021:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked Her Majesty’s Government, further to the announcement that the Belgium Gambling Commission will be running a gambling awareness campaign during this summer’s UEFA European Football Championship, what plans they have to advertise gambling support services during the tournament.

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Bishop of Southwark asks about debt relief

The Bishop of Southwark received the following written answer on 21st June 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Southwark asked Her Majesty’s Government, given the operation of vulture funds and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on poorer income countries, what consideration they have given to introducing legislation similar to the time-expired Debt Relief (Developing Countries) Act 2010.

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Bishop of St Albans asks about progress of global vaccine equity

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 21st June 2021:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to raise the issue of global vaccine equity at the upcoming G7 meeting in Falmouth.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con, Foreign Office): The UK is committed to rapid, equitable access to safe and effective vaccines. We are among the largest donors to the COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC), committing £548 million, which through match-funding leveraged $1 billion from other donors in 2020. This support to COVAX has been critical to it supplying COVID-19 vaccines to over 125 countries and economies. The UK’s investment in developing the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine also represents a critical contribution to global vaccination efforts, with 450 million doses having been delivered globally at cost so far.

The UK’s G7 Presidency is also championing equitable access to vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics to help the world fight and build back better from this pandemic. The UK has committed to sharing 100 million vaccine doses by June 2022, with the majority going to OVAX. We welcome the commitments made by our G7 partners to this shared goal, and look forward to discussing how we can work together to progress this agenda further.

Hansard

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked Her Majesty’s Government, further to the WHO Director-General’s remarks on 9 April that bi-lateral vaccine donations exacerbated global vaccine inequality, how many vaccines they have donated (1) to individual nations, and (2) to the COVAX programme; and what plans they have to support to the COVAX initiative further.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The UK remains committed to equitable access to safe and effective vaccines, and the Prime Minister has called on G7 leaders to vaccinate the world by the end of next year. As the multilateral mechanism set up to support international cooperation on vaccines, COVAX remains best-placed in allocating vaccines fairly and effectively.

The UK was one of the earliest and largest donors to COVAX, donating £548 million to the COVAX Advance Market Commitment. Our early funding gave COVAX the purchase power it needed to secure deals with manufacturers to supply internationally-approved vaccines for up to 92 low and middle income countries. So far, COVAX has helped deliver over 81 million doses to 129 countries and territories. The UK is also among the largest donors to the ACT-Accelerator, committing up to £813 million of UK aid to partners for the development and distribution of vaccines, treatments, and tests in developing countries, including £250 million of core funding to the Coalition for Pandemic Preparedness (CEPI) in 2020 to support its work to accelerate the development of, and access to vaccines. We will continue to discuss this issue with our G7 partners, and will issue details of the quantities and timeframe for UK sharing of vaccine doses soon.

Hansard