communities – Page 4 – The Church of England in Parliament

Bishop of Lincoln asks about child poverty strategy

The Bishop of Lincoln received the following written answer on 22nd November 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Lincoln asked His Majesty’s Government how the Child Poverty Strategy intends to reduce child poverty in rural and coastal communities.

Baroness Sherlock (Lab, DWP): We are committed to delivering our manifesto commitment to tackle child poverty which is why we have set up a Ministerial Taskforce that is urgently working to publish the Child Poverty Strategy in Spring 2025.

Bishop of St Albans speaks in support of farming families and communities

The Bishop of St Albans spoke in a debate on the continuity of farming families on 21st November 2024, highlighting the levels of stress among farmers and the need to reconcile raising revenue with supporting farming communities:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I too congratulate the noble Baroness, Lady Northover, on securing this debate. I declare my interests as president of the Rural Coalition and a vice-president of the LGA. I am a farmer’s son, and one of the great privileges of my job serving in a diocese that covers Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire is going into some of the most wonderful, forward-looking and innovative farms in this country, which are at the forefront of farming across Europe.

Even though there are many successful, go-ahead farmers, there is nevertheless a huge level of mental stress among them. That has been true for many years. Sadly, there is an extraordinarily high number of suicides among the farming community. As one elderly farmer put it, “Many of us are feeling so depressed because these announcements suggest that we are not wanted and are worth more dead than alive”. He pointed out that if he manages to die before April 2026, his assets will be passed on; if he does not, the farm will probably not survive.

Autumn Budget: Bishop of Newcastle urges government to consider effects on vulnerable groups

The Bishop of Newcastle spoke in a debate on the autumn budget on 11th November 2024, urging the government to carefully consider the impact of the budget on vulnerable groups:

The Lord Bishop of Newcastle: My Lords, I feel my B in GCSE maths is challenging my ability to speak with any fiscal authority in this debate, but I am glad of the opportunity to do so. I offer my congratulations to the noble Lord, Lord Booth-Smith, on his excellent maiden speech and I welcome him to your Lordships’ House.

I recognise that the decisions the Chancellor has made have not been easy, but balanced alongside the Government’s long-term priorities we must consider how this Budget will serve the needs of people who are struggling today, and affect what surely must be a significant long-term ambition—perhaps I can use the word “mission”—to improve social cohesion.

Bishop of St Albans highlights need for investment in rural communities

The Bishop of St Albans spoke in a debate on government priorities for rural communities on 15th October 2024, raising the need for concentrated investment in key sectors such as housing in rural areas:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness, Lady McIntosh, for getting this debate and I congratulate the noble Lord, Lord Elliott, on his excellent speech. I declare my interest as president of the Rural Coalition.

Rural communities make up nearly 20% of the population. That is similar to the number of people living in London, yet our biggest metropolis, among others, often feels far more integral to our policy and governance than our rural communities do. Rural communities are not just the responsibility of Defra; they are a significant proportion of our population, businesses, services and economy, and they cut across every government department. The specific impacts and challenges of policy rollout in rural areas need to be baked into the decision-making process of every single government department—not an afterthought but integral to the development of policy from the very beginning. Rural concerns are so often given to Defra which, while it has the lead on rural affairs, has very few of the levers necessary to bring about change. The sustainability of our rural communities should be of critical concern to us all, regardless of where we live.

Bishop of Lincoln speaks in debate on European Relations

On 10th October 2024, the Bishop of Lincoln took part in a debate on relations between the UK and Europe, highlighting the value in strong community relationships:

The Lord Bishop of Lincoln: My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Baroness, Lady Smith, for having made this debate possible and am looking forward to the speech of the noble Baroness, Lady Hodge, directly after this. Her experience as MP for Barking highlights how important it is that we are alert to the risk that cultural and ethnic diversity in our country can be exploited by extremists, and how important it is for us, as faith communities, not to have our faith and belonging co-opted by extremists in the way that we saw in the summer.

Faith and culture must not be seen as a cause of conflict. Our beliefs and values enrich and inspire us; these are the foundations of both individual and communal strength. Our cultural diversity, moreover, is a source of vitality, creativity and wisdom, but only when we are able to come together in dialogue, study and celebration. Faith remains a key feature of modern society in the UK and across Europe. It is worth remembering that Christianity, Islam and Judaism all have roots in the Middle East and long histories in Europe. It is vital that we build constructive relationships between these significant faith communities as we look towards a more positive future.

Bishop of Oxford asks about community cohesion

The Bishop of Oxford asked a question on government efforts to encourage community cohesion on 8th October 2024, following a statement marking the anniversary of the October 7^th attacks in Israel and the ongoing conflict in the Middle East:

The Lord Bishop of Oxford: My Lords, I thank the Minister for her very compassionate and clear Statement and the tone in which it was delivered. I also thank other noble Lords who have spoken and no doubt those who will speak about these terrible, terrible events and the effect they are having on our own communities.

Bishop of Lichfield asks about funding for interfaith community work

The Bishop of Lichfield asked a question on government support for community interfaith initiatives on 9th September 2024, during a discussion on drivers of prejudice and hate-crimes against Muslims:

The Lord Bishop of Lichfield: My Lords, some of the most valuable and effective work that is being done to improve community relations, and so to counter religious hate crime and prejudice, is at a local and grass-roots level; for example, in Walsall we have community iftars, church-mosque twinnings, multifaith drama groups, and so on. Can the Minister tell us what the Government are providing in funding and support for local initiatives and groups of that kind?

Bishop of Southwark asks about possibility of inquiry to address causes of recent social unrest

The Bishop of Southwark asked a question on the recent unrest and riots in the UK on 3rd September 2024, enquiring whether the government would set up an enquiry or similar mechanism to address the underlying economic and social issues in UK communities affected by the events:

The Lord Bishop of Southwark: My Lords, I express appreciation to the Minister and his right honourable friend the Home Secretary for the Government’s Statement. I extend heartfelt sympathy to the families of the victims of recent violent disorder. I support the Government’s strong and determined response, including the swift apprehension of perpetrators and bringing them to justice. I also applaud the strong and positive signal that this sends: protest cannot extend to violence and abuse. I am grateful that Members of the House have spoken so powerfully on the evil of anti-Semitic, Islamophobic and racist incidents, which the Minister rightly addressed as criminality. In addition to the measures announced, are His Majesty’s Government seeking to address, perhaps through an inquiry, some of the underlying economic and social issues that can render people vulnerable to exploitation and incitement, to their own cost and to the detriment of the wider community?

King’s Speech Debate: Bishop of Manchester welcomes focus on communities and accountability

The Bishop of Manchester spoke on the topic of criminal justice during the King’s speech debate on 24th July 2024, welcoming the government’s focus on community policing and policies to introduce a duty of candour for public officials:

The Lord Bishop of Manchester: My Lords, it is always a pleasure to follow my former boss.

As a trustee of the Clink Charity, where we help prisoners build skills for employment in the catering industry, I too welcome the noble Lord, Lord Timpson, and congratulate him on a powerful and hopeful speech. He might wish to know that the Clink restaurant at Styal prison won the Cheshire Life restaurant of the year award earlier this week. If his team can draw my remarks to his attention, I hope he will accept an invitation to dine with me there later this year, so he can see for himself. However, as my right reverend friend the Bishop of Gloucester has spoken eloquently about prisons already, I will focus elsewhere.

Bishop of Manchester asks about issue of holiday hunger for children

The Bishop of Manchester asked a question on the governments plans to tackle holiday hunger for children on 24th July 2024, raising the example of church projects offering support to children and families in school holidays:

The Lord Bishop of Manchester: Something like seven out of every eight local authorities now use this money to alleviate holiday hunger among our children. Can we have any hope that the Government will look at a more strategic way of helping children cope with hunger during the school holidays? Many of the churches in my diocese, and those of my right reverend friends here, are having to put on voluntary projects to support children during those periods. What can we hope for?

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