Tag: Bristol

Bishop of Bristol highlights importance of community and interfaith relations in promoting social cohesion

The Bishop of Bristol spoke in the Archbishop of York’s debate on social cohesion on 6th December 2024, raising local examples from the city of Bristol and the importance of community and interfaith outreach:

The Lord Bishop of Bristol: My Lords, I too am grateful to the most reverend Primate for securing this debate and setting its tone. I am also very grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Sharma, for his impressive speech, and look forward to many more contributions from him in this Chamber. I am glad to follow the noble Lord, Lord Elliott, and realise that there is more that unites us than divides us. Indeed, there are overlaps with many of the contributions from the Benches opposite in what I am about to say, because I want to speak of a particular place and of particular people.

I begin with Liverpool, as the noble Lord, Lord Elliott, mentioned. It was David Sheppard who, as Bishop of Liverpool, ordained me deaconess in Liverpool Cathedral and helped me to understand the stresses that port cities experience as global trade and human migration patterns shift. Port cities absorb, endure or thrive on the consequent change. Bishop David and his Archbishop and Free Church colleagues were well aware that social unrest was a symptom of the impact of felt injustice and a stimulus to work to create justice and peace. “Better together” was their theme and their motto in a city divided on economic, racial and religious grounds.

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Votes: Crown Estate Bill

On 5th November 2024, the House of Lords debated the Crown Estate Bill. Votes were held on amendments to the bill, in which Bishops took part:

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Bishop of Bristol asks about legal aid review

The Bishop of Bristol received the following written answer on7th October 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Bristol asked his Majesty’s Government whether they intend to continue the Review of Civil Legal Aid; and if so, when they intend to publish a final report.

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King’s Speech Debate: Bishop of Bristol encourages efforts to combat modern slavery

The Bishop of Bristol gave a speech on the topic of modern slavery during the King’s Speech debate on 22nd July 2024, emphasising the need to combat the growth in worker exploitation and applauding the government’s commitment to strengthening workers’ rights:

The Lord Bishop of Bristol: My Lords, it is a great pleasure to follow the noble Lords, Lord Howarth and Lord O’Neill, and to welcome and congratulate the noble Lord, Lord Vallance, and greet him as the granddaughter of a Cornish man and a Scilly woman, as my father rather cheekily determined it.

I preface my remarks by welcoming, in an adjunct to the gracious Speech, the Government’s proposal to renew the Lords Spiritual (Women) Act, and I should declare my interest as I am a Member who benefits from its current provisions. But it is on modern slavery that I wish to focus my remarks this evening as, in the labour exploitation that we have seen increasingly in the areas of agriculture, domestic work and social care, there is growth that we should not seek and indeed need to guard against. As your Lordships know, modern slavery is a crime which affects every community in the UK. It is not a niche issue. It is estimated that 130,000 people are held in modern slavery in our country today, and we are used to hearing about day-to-day transactions where there is exploitation in car washes, manicurists or, increasingly, in accessing social care.

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Bishop of Bristol asks about waiting times for identifying victims of modern slavery

On 13th may 2024, the Bishop of Bristol tabled a question on waiting times for decisions under the National Referral Mechanism for modern slavery:

The Lord Bishop of Bristol: To ask His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to reduce waiting times for ‘conclusive grounds’ decisions under the National Referral Mechanism for modern slavery.

Lord Sharpe of Epsom (Con, Home Office): My Lords, the Government remain committed to ensuring that victims are identified promptly. We have taken steps to shorten the timelines for making decisions in the national referral mechanism, including new guidance for making reasonable grounds decisions, changes to the online referral form and setting timescales for information to be provided to the competent authorities. We have also significantly increased staffing for the competent authorities and are seeing the results through increased output of decisions.

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Bishop of Bristol asks about report on modern slavery linked to car wash sites

The Bishop of Bristol received the following written answer on 29th April 2024:

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

  • what assessment they have made of the report Car Wash Code of Practice Project Report: Home Office Modern Slavery Prevention Fund, published by Nottingham Trent University and submitted to the Home Office in October 2022.
  • when they will respond to the report Car Wash Code of Practice Project Report: Home Office Modern Slavery Prevention Fund, published by Nottingham Trent University and submitted to the Home Office in October 2022.
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Votes: Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill

On 16th April 2024, the House of Lords debated Commons reasons and amendments to the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill. Votes were held on further amendments to the bill, in which Bishops took part:

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Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill: Bishop of Bristol supports amendment on due regard for international and domestic law

On 16th April 2024, during a debate on the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill, the Bishop of Bristol spoke in support of an amendment tabled by Lord Coaker, which would stipulate that the bill should have due regard for international law, the Children Act 1989, the Human Rights Act 1998, and the Modern Slavery Act 2015:

The Lord Bishop of Bristol: My Lords, I welcome the amendment from the noble Lord, Lord Coaker, particularly the detail of the inclusion in it of the Modern Slavery Act 2015; it is a detail except for those who have been, or may well have been, trafficked. There are as many as 4,000 people in the national referral mechanism whose cases are currently to be determined. That is absolutely right and proper under current legislation, and that legislation should be taken into account as part of the implementation of this Bill.

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Bishop of Bristol asks about Community Ownership Fund for places of worship

The Bishop of Bristol received the following written answer on 22nd March 2024:

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

  • how much funding has been awarded in total from the Community Ownership Fund to communities seeking to turn places of worship into assets of community value.
  • which places of worship have received support from the Community Ownership Fund.
  • what steps they are taking to enable local communities to safeguard places of worship through the Community Ownership Fund.
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Votes: Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill

On 11th March 2024, the House of Lords debated the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill. Votes were held on amendments to the bill, in which a Bishop took part:

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