On the 18th January 2016 Baroness Butler-Sloss asked the Government, on behalf of Lord Harries of Pentregarth, “what is their response to the report of the Commission on Religion and Belief in British Public Life Living with Difference published on 7 December”. Rt Revd Paul Butler, Bishop of Durham, asked a supplementary question. Continue reading “Bishop of Durham highlights the importance of religious literacy at all levels of government”
Church of England Week in Westminster, 11th – 15th January 2016
Welcome to the Church of England’s weekly round-up of activity in Parliament.
This week bishops in the House of Lords led a debate on recent flooding and spoke in debates on Lords powers, the NHS and the protection of cultural property in armed conflict. They also took part in debates on the Government’s Trade Union Bill and Welfare Reform and Work Bill. Bishops also asked questions on rough sleeping and human rights in China and in Eritrea. In the House of Commons the Second Church Estates Commissioner answered questions on flooding, roof repairs and preparedness for the EU referendum.
Wednesday 30th December
The Bishop of St Albans received an answer to a written question concerning the detention of Chinese Human Rights lawyer, Pu Zhiqiang
Monday 11th January
The Bishop of Rochester asked a question about rough sleepers.
The Bishop also spoke during the Second Reading debate of the Government’s Trade Union Bill.
Tuesday 12th January
The Bishop of St Albans asked a question about human rights in Eritrea.
The Bishop of Rochester co-sponsored an amendment on supported housing to the Welfare Reform and Work Bill.
Wednesday 13th January
The Second Church Estates Commissioner answered a question on flooding in Blackburn diocese.
The Bishop of Rochester spoke in a debate on the Strathclyde Review into powers of the Lords.
Thursday 14th January
The Bishop of Leeds led a debate on flooding, in which the Bishop of St Albans also spoke.
Both the Bishops of Leeds and St Albans also spoke in a debate on the NHS.
The Bishop of Portsmouth spoke in a debate about protecting cultural property in armed conflict.
Friday 15th January
The Second Church Estates Commissioner answered questions on EU exit vote preparedeness and church roof repairs.
Church Commissioner answer: contingency in event of a vote to leave EU
On 15th January 2016 the Second Church Estates Commissioner answered a written question from Tim Loughton MP on contingency plans in the event of a vote to leave the EU:
Tim Loughton (East Worthing and Shoreham): To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what contingency arrangements the Church Commissioners have made for the eventuality of a majority leave vote in the upcoming EU referendum.
Mrs Caroline Spelman: The Church Commissioners and the Church of England Pensions Board manage their investment portfolios using high quality well diversified and long term strategies. The Church Commissioners and Pensions Board believe that they are well positioned for any market re-pricing or uncertainty that may prevail prior to or after the referendum.
(Via Parliament.UK)
Church Commissioner answer: Church Roof repair fund
On the 15th January 2016 the Second Church Estates Commissioner, Rt Hon Caroline Spelman MP, answered a written question on uptake of the church roof repair fund in Devon and Cornwall.
Mr Geoffrey Cox (Torridge and West Devon): To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what grants the Church Commissioners have given to churches in (a) Devon and (b) Cornwall from the Roof Repair Fund in each of the last five years.
Mrs Caroline Spelman: The Listed Places of Worship Roof Repair Fund grants are distributed by the National Heritage Memorial Fund, on behalf of the Government. There has been one round of grants to date, announced in March 2015,(a) 22 churches in Devon were offered grants totalling £1,199,700
(b) 7 churches in Cornwall were offered grants totalling £492,700.
A second round to distribute a further £25 million allocated by the Treasury is currently open, with applications closing on Friday, 26 February.
(via Parliament.uk)
Bishop of Portsmouth calls on UK Government to ratify Hague Convention for Protection of Cultural Property in Armed Conflict
On 14th January 2016 the House of Lords debated a motion from Baroness Andrews “to ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their plan for ratifying the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict”. The Bishop of Portsmouth, Rt Revd Christopher Foster, spoke in the debate:
The Lord Bishop of Portsmouth: My Lords, I add my thanks to the noble Baroness, Lady Andrews, for this debate and for the very important Question that she asks of the Government Front Bench. In June 2015, the Ministry of Defence answered a Written Question, as we have heard, on the timetable for ratifying the Hague convention. A Minister stated:
“The Government believes that protection of cultural property in the event of armed conflict is a priority and remains committed to that task”.
She confirmed the,
“plan to introduce legislation to ratify the Convention”,
as we know,
“as soon as Parliamentary time allows”.
The Answer continued with a reassurance:
“Respect for cultural property is already upheld across the Armed Forces and they currently act within the spirit of the 1954 Convention. This respect is incorporated into military law”.
I wholeheartedly welcome that commitment and ask the Minister if she can recognise both the embarrassment of the present and lengthy delay in ratification, which successive Governments since 2008 have pledged to end, and the compelling practical, cultural and humanitarian reasons for speedy rectification of this inordinate delay. Continue reading “Bishop of Portsmouth calls on UK Government to ratify Hague Convention for Protection of Cultural Property in Armed Conflict”
Bishop of Leeds leads debate on national response to flooding
On 14th January 2016 the Bishop of Leeds, Rt Revd Nick Baines, led a short debate in the House of Lords on flood management. His speech and the Government response is below. The full text of the debate, including a speech by the Bishop of St Albans, can be read here.
The Lord Bishop of Leeds: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they intend to review their long term strategy for flood management, particularly in rural areas that do not qualify for large-scale flood defences.
The Lord Bishop of Leeds: My Lords, I am grateful for the opportunity to put to the Government the Question before us. If there was a sound track to this debate it would probably include Phil Collins’s “In Too Deep”.
It is important to note the destructiveness of the recent flooding, given that the news agenda moves on very quickly and communities which found themselves at the heart of a sympathetic nation quickly feel themselves to be forgotten. For some of the communities in my diocese, the recent floods come in the wake—almost literally—of other occurrences in recent years. For them the need for longer-term and more joined-up measures is obvious.
I pay tribute to civic leaders, emergency services, public service workers, members of the Armed Forces, the Environment Agency and local volunteers, many of whom sacrificed holidays and family time over Christmas to support victims of this appallingly destructive flooding. Continue reading “Bishop of Leeds leads debate on national response to flooding”
Bishop of St Albans suggests new approaches to flood management
On 14th January 2016 the Bishop of Leeds, Rt Revd Nick Baines, led a short debate in the House of Lords on flood management. The Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, also spoke in the debate.
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I thank my right reverend colleague for today’s debate. Due to the shortage of time, straightaway I shall focus a little more on whole-catchment flood management. A renewed focus on this approach has been one of the notable outcomes of the current flood crisis, helped of course by the exemplary work of the Pickering slow-the-flow scheme, which the noble Baroness, Lady McIntosh, described so eloquently.
The potential of whole-catchment approaches—for example, using meandering rivers, planting trees and building permeable dams to slow water in upland areas and reduce peak flow further downstream—is enormous. In the long term, it provides a cheaper, more environmentally friendly method of flood management, which works, as a number of people have already said, with natural processes rather than constantly trying to hold back the tide. Such approaches also have the benefit of being effective across a catchment, rather than simply focusing on one or two high-value areas, and so can help to lower the flood risk in rural hamlets and villages that might otherwise not qualify for flood protection. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans suggests new approaches to flood management”
Bishop of St Albans calls for more personal responsibility and new social contract between citizens and the NHS
On 14th January 2016 the House of Lords debated a motion from Lord Turnberg “that this House takes note of the ability of the National Health Service to meet present and future demands.” The Bishop of St Albans spoke in the debate:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I am glad to congratulate the noble Baroness, Lady Watkins, on her maiden speech. Due to the pressure on time, I want to focus on one very small area, which has been alluded to by various noble Lords but which I want to develop a little. It is the pressing and vital need to reboot the concept of a social contract, which lay at the heart of the national health system as envisaged by Beveridge and which balanced rights and responsibilities, not least against the background of living in a time when people have increasingly emphasised rights and perhaps downplayed the sense of duty and responsibility. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans calls for more personal responsibility and new social contract between citizens and the NHS”
Bishop of Leeds praises “heroic” work of NHS staff in Lords health debate
On 14th January 2016 the House of Lords debated a motion from Lord Turnberg “that this House takes note of the ability of the National Health Service to meet present and future demands.” The Bishop of Leeds, Rt Revd Nick Baines, spoke in the debate.
The Lord Bishop of Leeds: My Lords, I am very grateful for the opportunity to speak in this debate. Much of what I was going to say has been said and I do not intend to repeat it. I have surveyed some of the National Health Service foundation trusts in my diocese and there are common threads, both of opportunity and concern: financial, operational and clinical. Yet it ought to be said that some of the administrations of these health services are doing heroic work at a time of enormous complexity and constraint. Again, as has been said about the need to raise morale among staff, we should at least thank and congratulate those who are making the system work despite the challenges. Continue reading “Bishop of Leeds praises “heroic” work of NHS staff in Lords health debate”
Bishop of Rochester contributes to debate on Lords powers
On 13th January 2016, the Bishop of Rochester, the Rt Revd James Langstaff, spoke in a debate on Lord Strathclyde’s motion “that this House takes note of Command Paper Cm 9177, Secondary legislation and the primacy of the House of Commons.” This related to the Strathclyde Review, which assessed the House of Lord’s powers regarding Statutory Instruments.
The Lord Bishop of Rochester: My Lords, I, like other Members of your Lordships House, am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Strathclyde, for the work that he has undertaken and for giving rise to what is clearly an important debate about the role of this House, which probably goes much wider than some of the specifics in front of us today. By way of introduction, I will add a little correction to the text of the noble Lord’s report.
Continue reading “Bishop of Rochester contributes to debate on Lords powers”
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