Renters Reform Bill: Bishop of Chelmsford speaks in support of comprehensive housing strategy reform

The Bishop of Chelmsford gave a speech at the second reading of the Renters Reform Bill on 15th May 2024, calling for comprehensive reforms on housing as part of a long term strategy encompassing all tenures, and lamenting the removal of parts of the bill abolishing section 21 evictions:

The Lord Bishop of Chelmsford: My Lords, it is a pleasure to follow the noble Lord, Lord Best, from whose wisdom and experience I have personally gained such a lot. I am grateful for his contribution today. I declare my interest as the Church of England’s lead bishop for housing. Also, as I am in clergy-tied housing myself, my retirement house is currently let to a long-term tenant.

My starting place is that good homes are the building blocks of strong communities. Bad homes threaten mental and physical well-being, hinder personal and economic development, and compromise safety. Everyone needs a good home so that we have a good society where people can flourish. As others have said, there is much to welcome in the Bill. Private renting is the most insecure and expensive tenure, and it requires significant reform. I am pleased that the decent homes standard will be applied to the private rented sector for the first time. I am also pleased that the Government have tabled amendments to prohibit landlords and letting agencies from discriminating against families with children and people in receipt of benefits. I will seek more details on how this will work in practice.

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Bishop of Southwark asks about funding for United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA)

The Bishop of Southwark received the following written answer on 15th May 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Southwark asked His Majesty’s Government whether they intend to resume funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), following the publication of the Independent Review of Mechanisms and Procedures to Ensure Adherence by UNRWA to the Humanitarian Principle of Neutrality on 22 April.

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Bishop of Leeds asks about diplomatic efforts to secure a resolution to the conflict in Sudan

The Bishop of Leeds received the following written answer on 15th May 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Leeds asked His Majesty’s Government what diplomatic action they are taking, along with international partners, to secure a peaceful resolution to the conflict in Sudan; and what consideration they have given to appointing a dedicated envoy for Sudan.

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Bishop of St Albans asks about local government finance in rural areas

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 15th May 2024:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government:

  • what assessment they have made of the adequacy of core funding for delivering rural services; and what plans they have to create equitable funding between rural and urban councils.
  • what consideration they have given to extending the Rural Services Delivery Grant to all rural councils in future years.
  • whether they plan to fully implement the changes to the Needs Assessment component of the funding formula made in 2013; and subsequently whether they will increase funding to rural councils to reflect inflation in the years since these changes were made.

Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con, DLUHC): The final Local Government Finance Settlement for 2024-25 makes available up to £64.7 billion, an increase in Core Spending Power of up to £4.5 billion or 7.5% in cash terms on 2023-24. This above-inflation increase demonstrates how the Government stands behind councils up and down the country. Furthermore, we recognise the importance and difficulties of councils serving dispersed populations. That is why we have increased the value of the Rural Services Delivery Grant by over 15%, from £95 million to £110 million in 2024-25. This is the highest increase since 2018-19, and the second successive year of above-inflation increases.

We last calculated the Settlement Funding Assessment in 2013/14. The Government is committed to reforming the local government funding landscape in the next Parliament to deliver simpler, fairer and longer settlements.

The Rural Services Delivery Grant is allocated to local authorities ranking in the top-quartile of sparsely populated areas in England, using the Government’s ‘Super Sparsity’ measure. The methodology is unchanged from 2023-24 and any funding decisions beyond the 2024-25 financial year are a matter for the next Spending Review.

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Bishop of Newcastle asks about proportion of accessible housing in the north-east of England

The Bishop of Newcastle received the following written answer on 15th May 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Newcastle asked His Majesty’s Government:

  • further to statistics from the 2021 Census which showed that the North East has the highest proportion of disabled people in England, what steps they are taking to ensure there is an adequate provision of accessible housing in the region.
  • what proportion of homes built in the North East of England in the past year are wheelchair accessible.
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Bishop of St Albans asks about impact of low rates of breast-feeding on breast cancer

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 15th May 2024:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of low rates of breastfeeding on incidences of breast cancer.

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Votes: Digital Markets, Competition & Consumers Bill

On 14th May 2024, the House of Lords debated Commons reasons and amendments to the Digital Markets, Competition & Consumers Bill. Votes were held on further Lords amendments to the bill, in which Bishops took part:

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Bishop of Leeds asks about conflict in Sudan and support for Sudanese diaspora

The Bishop of Leeds received the following written answers on 14th May 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Leeds asked His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to support members of the Sudanese diaspora in the UK.

Lord Benyon (Con, FCDO): The FCDO maintains a relationship with, and supports, the Sudanese diaspora in the UK, including through engagement with them at events and at the monthly meeting between the FCDO and the APPG for Sudan and South Sudan.

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Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill: Bishop of Manchester welcomes legislation and raises issue of maintaining the rule of law

The Bishop of Manchester spoke at the second reading of the Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill on 13th May 2024, supporting the intent of the bill and commenting on the importance of safeguarding the rule of law whilst ensuring the swift exoneration of the victims of the Horizon scandal:

The Lord Bishop of Manchester: My Lords, I admit to being a little nervous as a non-lawyer entering a debate that has already heard from so many distinguished minds. Some may think that they have heard enough from the lawyers and do not need to hear from me.

I am grateful to the Minister for introducing the Bill. I concur with other noble Lords in hoping that it will be swiftly passed into law. The many victims of this long-running scandal and injustice must now benefit without further undue delay. As the noble Lord said in opening this debate, Parliament is not the usual route by which we overturn wrongful convictions. I echo others today, as well as what I have said in debates on other matters, in believing that we need to tread very carefully when acting in ways that move us on to territory more normally occupied by the courts and the judiciary. That is particularly important in Britain, because we give such huge weight to precedent. The Minister has, I am pleased to note, assured us that this Bill should not be considered a setting of precedent, and others have concurred. However, I think that that aspect of what we are doing merits, albeit briefly, deeper consideration. What one Government do today, no matter how warily, may be drawn on by future Governments in ways that stretch the original intentions well beyond breaking point. Our best defence against that, perhaps our only defence, is to set down very clear principles, not merely general assertions, at the outset.

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Bishop of Manchester asks about impact of early release on prisoner qualifications

The Bishop of Manchester asked a question on the issue of advanced release dates preventing prisoners from completing qualifications begun whilst in prison, during a discussion on the End of Custody Supervised Licence Scheme on 13th May 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Manchester: My Lords, I declare that I am a trustee of the Clink Charity: we are involved with training people in prison for qualifications for restaurants, catering and the like. Those last few weeks in prison are often a crucial time for prisoners gaining the qualifications they need to get a decent job when they are released. I am sure every prisoner wants to go as soon as they can, but is the Minister aware, and will the Government take consideration, of the effect of prisoners not receiving their qualifications because they have not quite been completed by the time their advanced release date comes?

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