On 11th February 2015, three bishops took part in divisions on the Government’s Deregulation Bill, during its Report Stage.
Deregulation Bill- Divisions
Tag: Chester
Recall of MPs Bill – Division
On 10th February 2015, three bishops took part in a division on the Recall of MPs Bill, during the bill’s Report Stage:
Amendment 1
Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town moved amendment 1, in clause 1, page 1, line 10, at end to insert: “( ) In this Act the signing of a recall petition constitutes a public act and the information of each person who signs a recall petition will be accessible in a marked electoral register, if requested.” Continue reading “Recall of MPs Bill – Division”
Recall of MPs Bill – Bishop of Chester speaks on amendments
On 10th February 2015 the Bishop of Chester, Rt Rev Peter Forster, spoke during the Lords deliberation of an amendment to the Recall of MPs Bill concerning conditions for commencing the recall process. The amendment, in the name of Lord Tyler, was withdrawn following the debate. His comments are below and can be seen in context on the UK Parliament website, here.
The Lord Bishop of Chester: My Lords, I will speak briefly on this. I think that it is a mistake to play off these conditions against each other, as if you were to ditch one and get a quid pro quo strength in another. Continue reading “Recall of MPs Bill – Bishop of Chester speaks on amendments”
Deregulation Bill – Divisons
On 3rd and 5th February 2015, three bishops took part in divisions on the Government’s Deregulation Bill, during its Report Stage.
Bishop of Chester takes part in debate on Counter-Terrorism and Security Bill
On 28th January 2015, the Bishop of Chester, the Rt Revd Peter Forster, took part in the debate on amendments to the Government’s Counter-Terrorism and Security Bill, during its Committee Stage. Speaking during the debate on the duties of higher education institutions under the Bill, the Bishop raised the point that places of religious instruction and education did not appear to fall under the remit of the Bill. Following the debate, the amendments were withdrawn.
The Lord Bishop of Chester: I will speak very briefly as we come to the end of this debate. As I was listening to it, I realised that there is a whole area to which we have not referred but which is entirely relevant; that is, religious institutions and places of religious instruction and education. Those are missing from the Bill. The application of the Bill to universities will have very uncertain benefits and be extremely impractical to apply in as much as universities are independent institutions. They do not always appear so to the heads of those institutions when they deal with Governments but they are independent institutions. That is a really important feature. Most of the authorities listed here are not independent in that way, although other educational establishments are included. Continue reading “Bishop of Chester takes part in debate on Counter-Terrorism and Security Bill”
Bishop of Chester takes part in debate on Recall of MPs Bill
On 19th January 2015, the Bishop of Chester, the Rt Revd Peter Forster, took part in the debate on the Government’s Recall of MPs Bill, during the second day of its Committee Stage. He spoke three times during the debate on Lord Hamilton of Epsom’s amendment, which sought to raise the threshold at which a petition against an MP would trigger the recall process, from 10 per cent to 20 per cent. The amendment was withdrawn at the end of the debate.
The Lord Bishop of Chester: My Lords, I think that only these Benches could participate in these petitions since we have a right to vote in general elections, although there is a convention among us that we do not. I think that the last person who did so was Archbishop Runcie, who simply could not resist voting against Mrs Thatcher. He was found out and promised not to do it again, so there is a convention that we do not do it but we could. Continue reading “Bishop of Chester takes part in debate on Recall of MPs Bill”
Divisions – Assisted Dying Bill
On 16th January 2015, a number of bishops took part in divisions in the House of Lords, during the Committee Stage of Lord Falconer of Thoroton’s Assisted Dying Bill.
Bishops take part in Committee Stage of Assisted Dying Bill
On 16th January 2015, the Bishop of Carlisle, the Rt Revd James Newcome, and the Bishop of Chester, the Rt Revd Peter Forster, spoke during the Committee Stage of Lord Falconer of Thoroton’s Assisted Dying Bill. Subjects debated included the terminology used in the text and title of the Bill, and clarifications of the relationship between patients and the medical practitioners required to treat them. The debate on the Bill was suspended at the end of the day. The Bill is unlikely to make further progress during the current Parliament. There were also two divisions on the Bill, and more details can be found here.
Continue reading “Bishops take part in Committee Stage of Assisted Dying Bill”
Bishop of Chester asks Government about electricity imports
On 8th January 2015 the Bishop of Chester, Rt Rev Peter Forster, asked an oral question on importing electricity.
Continue reading “Bishop of Chester asks Government about electricity imports”
Bishop of Chester speaks during question time on dog licensing
On 16th December 2014, Lord Hoyle asked Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to reintroduce a dog licensing fee. The Bishop of Chester, the Rt Revd Peter Forster, asked a supplementary question:
The Lord Bishop of Chester: My Lords, I am one of those who wear a dog collar in this House—and for the privilege of doing so I have to be licensed. But as far as I am aware, no fees have been paid. Might I suggest that enough is enough?
Lord Mackenzie of Framwellgate (Non-Afl): My Lords, the right reverend Prelate has stolen my thunder, in a sense. I was going to ask: because of the increasing number of dangerous dog incidents, would it not be worth having a look at licensing the owners? Continue reading “Bishop of Chester speaks during question time on dog licensing”
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