The Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich received the following written answer on 27th March 2024:
The Lord Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich asked His Majesty’s Government what consultation they undertook with service personnel and their families regarding the Modernised Accommodation Offer for the armed forces.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich asks about accommodation for members of the armed forces”On 14th February 2024, the House of Lords debated the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill in committee. The Bishop of Bristol spoke in support of amendment 75 to the bill, which would introduce an exemption clause to prevent those who had worked with UK armed forces or the UK government overseas, or their families, from being sent to Rwanda. She also spoke in support of amendments 70, 73, and 85, on the issue of protecting victims of modern slavery from removal to Rwanda:
The Lord Bishop of Bristol: My Lords, I am grateful to all those supporting Amendment 75 and for the speeches on it. I am further grateful to the noble Lords, Lord Kerr and Lord Alton, and the noble Baroness, Lady Chakrabarti—they are all helping us to delve deeper into the legal and moral issues in these amendments. I am particularly grateful to the noble and learned Baroness, Lady Butler-Sloss, who has set out her Amendments 70, 73 and 85, to which I have subscribed my name.
This issue is close to my heart, as I speak on behalf of the Church of England on human trafficking and modern slavery issues. I do so from the city of Bristol, with its history of slavery and its current commitment to prevent human trafficking and slavery, including domestically—we train our lay officers to spot the signs of those hiding in plain sight—and to provide refuge for those on their journey through the NRM. I was also particularly grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Deben: I think that I will miss church downstairs, so I am grateful that he has brought church upstairs in his Ash Wednesday words to us about the deep moral issues in our debate today.
Continue reading “Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill: Bishop of Bristol speaks in favour of amendments protecting armed forces workers and victims of modern slavery”
The Bishop of Leeds asked a question on UK armed forces capacity on 15th January 2024, following a government statement on strikes on Houthi military facilities in Yemen:
The Lord Bishop of Leeds: My Lords, I am very reassured by much of what I have heard this evening, but I think there is a distinction between what is escalatory in intent and in effect. If the effect is escalation, how are the UK Government preparing or planning for a wider escalation? I am particularly concerned about the capacity of our Armed Forces. I am happy to be reassured, but often in this House we have questions about whether we have sufficient personnel, as well as equipment. Can the Minister give some assurance that we do have capacity, and that the implications of the 2023 integrated review might be revisited in the light of developments in the last few months?
Continue reading “Bishop of Leeds asks about capacity of the UK armed forces”
The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 20th July 2023:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to support armed forces personnel with the increased cost of living.
Baroness Goldie (Con): Defence recognises that nobody is immune from the recent rises in inflation and the cost of living. We are committed to doing what we can to assist Armed Forces personnel where possible, including implementing the independent Armed Forces’ Pay Review Body’s 2022 pay award recommendations in full, a pay uplift of 3.75%; capping subsidised accommodation charge increases to 1%; increasing travel allowances by 7%; no rise in food charges; over 32,000 Service Personnel have received a Contribution in Lieu of Council Tax rebate of £150; and families can save around £3,400 per child per year through our wraparound childcare.
The Bishop of Derby asked a question on the use of depleted uranium shells by British armed forces, during a debate on the supply of these shells to Ukraine on 30th March 2023:
The Lord Bishop of Derby: Does the Minister agree that, whatever legitimate concerns people may have about the health and environmental impact of uranium-depleted shells, which I personally share, President Putin’s claim that he is looking to store tactical nuclear missiles in Belarus because the West is collectively beginning to use weapons with a nuclear component is utterly bogus, given that British forces have been using these armour-piercing shells legally for several decades, in accordance with Article 36 of the 1977 protocol additional to the Geneva conventions?
Lord Harlech (Con): I completely agree with the right reverend Prelate.
Hansard
On 8th December 2021, the House of Lords debated Commons Reasons regarding amendments to the Armed Forces Bill. Votes were held on further amendments to the bill, in which a Bishop took part:
On 8th November 2021, the House of Lords debated the Armed Forces Bill in committee. The Bishop of St Albans spoke in the debate, supporting an amendment tabled by Baroness Massey of Darwen which would raise the age of enlistment into the armed forces to 18:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I rise to speak in support of Amendment 61 in the name of the noble Baroness, Lady Massey of Darwen, to which I have added my name. I have done so because of my concerns about the well-being of young people and because I am not convinced that there are sufficient benefits in allowing the enlistment of young people of 16 or 17 rather than 18. Evidence and personal experience tell me that there is not.
I speak because of the experience of a member of my own family, so I know a story inside out, but I have also spoken to a number of parents whose children were recruited under the age of 18—and I have heard some very similar stories those described by the noble Baroness, Lady Massey, in her speech. I have no doubt that, for some early leavers recruited below the age of 18, the mental damage can take years to recover from. These recruits have the legal status as children and are entitled in law under safeguarding legislation to be protected from harm as far as possible.
There are a number of other reasons why I question this policy. Younger recruits suffer from very high drop-out rates. Official statistics show that, once enlisted, 30% of the Army’s under-18 recruits leave or are dismissed before they finish their training. They can find themselves out of work and education within months of joining, and these discharged recruits are not tracked, so we cannot speculate on how they fare after they leave the military. That being said, it would not be unreasonable to say that, had the option of joining up not been available, they would have stayed in full-time education, taken an apprenticeship or worked part time while undertaking a qualification. We are talking about not some small, troubled minority who failed to adapt adequately to military service, but nearly a third of all junior recruits. That is affecting some 700 young people a year, according to the Child Rights International Network.
Continue reading “Armed Forces Bill: Bishop of St Albans supports raising age of enlistment to 18”The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 4th November 2021:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked Her Majesty’s Government whether there are any gaming machines of any category as defined in the Gambling Act 2005 in any (1) catering, (2) retail, or (3) leisure facilities, in UK bases provided by the Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about gambling machines on UK Armed Forces bases”The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 1st November 2021:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked what assessment they have made of the Forces in Mind Trust report The United Kingdom Armed Forces Veterans’ Health and Gambling Study, published on 23 September.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about results of the United Kingdom Armed Forces Veterans’ Health and Gambling Study”On 13th September 2021, the Bishop of Blackburn tabled a question on gambling disorders in the military on behalf of the Bishop of St Albans:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to legislate (1) to require annual medical screening questions related to gambling disorder in the military, and (2) to annually assess the prevalence of gambling disorder among members of the armed forces.
The Lord Bishop of Blackburn: My Lords, with the leave of the House, I ask the Question standing on the Order Paper in the name of my colleague the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of St Albans.
Continue reading “Bishop of Blackburn tables question on gambling in the military on behalf of the Bishop of St Albans”
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