On the 10th May 2018 the Bishop of Chester, the Rt Revd Peter Forster spoke in a debate hosted by Lord Faulkner of Worcester about the Scrap Metal Dealers Act. Bishop Peter welcomed the act and the reduction of thefts but highlighted the need to tighten up the act and questioned whether sentencing of criminals of metal theft truly reflected the impact and scale of this particular type of theft to the historic building and the local community. Baroness Williams responded for the Government, her remarks can be found below.
Continue reading “Bishop of Chester highlights continued need to combat metal theft from churches”
On 19th March 2018, Dame Caroline Spelman, the Second Church Estates Commissioner, answered a written question from Sir Mark Hendrick, the Labour/Co-op Member for Preston, about churches involved in the WiSpire scheme:
On the 8th March the Second Church Estates Commissioner, the Rt Hon Dame Caroline Spelman MP answered written and oral questions in the House of Commons. Questions covered a range of issues including the Church Investors Group, digital connectivity, environmental taxation, homelessness, the Holy Sepulchre, church infrastructure and financial education in church schools.
The Lord Bishop of Ely: My Lords, I am very grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Cormack, for his intervention, Lincoln having recently won a favourite cathedral award—Ely is not too bad either. Of course, these churches, cathedrals and chapels are part of our shared heritage, but does the Minister agree that even more important is the work undertaken by cathedrals and churches in food banks, in supporting economic regeneration and in working with homeless people and the lonely, especially in remote parts of the country? Does he agree that the Government should endorse that work and will he encourage the way in which they can support it through the use and deployment of these buildings? 
The Lord Bishop of Oxford: My Lords, the Minister will be aware of the impact on churches of such theft, particularly from roofs. It has a devastating effect on church communities and knock-on effects for important local amenities. Can she clarify what the Home Office can do to encourage enforcement of the need to register scrap metal dealers with local authorities, as well as not selling on scrap for cash? 
The Church of England in Parliament 
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