The Bishop of Lichfield received the following written answers on 13th March 2025:
The Lord Bishop of Lichfield asked His Majesty’s Government what the average caseload of probation officers in England and Wales was in each year of the last decade.
Continue reading “Bishop of Lichfield asks about probation service and suicide in prisons”The Bishop of Chelmsford asked a question on introducing a legal definition of child criminal exploitation on 24th February 2025, during a discussion on county lines drug trafficking:
The Lord Bishop of Chelmsford: My Lords, the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill introduces new offences, which appear to have no connection to immigration, of possessing any specified article that might be used in connection with any serious offence. What safeguards does the Minister think need to be in that Bill to prevent the needless criminalisation of children? Does he agree that a legal definition of child criminal exploitation might help in that?
Continue reading “Bishop of Chelmsford asks about safeguarding victims of child criminal exploitation”On 5th February 2025, the House of Lords debated the Data (Use and Access) Bill. Votes were held on amendments to the bill, in which Bishops took part:
The Bishop of Norwich asked a question on police action in cases of institutional abuse on 8th January 2025:
The Lord Bishop of Norwich: My Lords, recent events have rightly turned the spotlight on the Church of England’s record around safeguarding. Those of us on these Benches are highly committed to listening to survivors and bringing about the further institutional and cultural changes that need to be made, beyond the enormous progress that has been made over the past 10 years. What assurance can the Minister give that the police will act on information that they receive, which, it is alleged, was not the case in 2013, when the horrendous crimes of John Smyth were correctly reported to them?
Continue reading “Bishop of Norwich asks about police action in cases of institutional abuse”
The Bishop of Gloucester received the following written answer on 19th December 2024:
The Lord Bishop of Gloucester asked His Majesty’s Government what steps they will take to ensure that electronic monitoring tags are available in all sizes and that no one will be required to remain in prison solely because there is no electronic tag that will fit them.
Continue reading “Bishop of Gloucester asks about use of electronic tagging”The Bishop of Gloucester received the following written answers on 16th December 2024:
The Lord Bishop of Gloucester asked His Majesty’s Government what plans they have to publish the number of UK citizens in prison abroad as a matter of routine
Continue reading “Bishop of Gloucester asks about status of prisoners in the UK and overseas”
The Bishop of Gloucester spoke in a debate on the autumn budget on 11th November 2024, with a focus on reform of the criminal justice system:
The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: My Lords, I will focus on the Budget in the context of criminal justice, and declare my interest as the Anglican Bishop for HM Prisons in England and Wales.
I was encouraged to hear from the Chancellor that the Government intend to
“begin to repair the justice system”,
and I welcome the extra investment in the Ministry of Justice—although how that will be spent is vital. We need to ensure that the aim is not to finance our way out of a prison capacity crisis. Let us first address the purpose of prison and then put the resources in the right place, with a long-term vision of enabling strong and healthy families and communities. As a Christian, I hold fast to hope and transformation. Reoffending continues a pattern of broken relationships and is costly, not only to the fabric of society but in financial terms: it costs approximately £18 billion per year. Let us not increase funds simply to do more of the same, because all the evidence is that it is not working.
Continue reading “Autumn Budget: Bishop of Gloucester highlights need for reform in the criminal justice system”The Bishop of Sheffield spoke in a debate on prison capacity on 12th September 2024, highlighting the important role made by prison chaplains and the need for prison staff to be properly resourced and supported:
The Lord Bishop of Sheffield: My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Baroness, Lady Burt, for enabling this debate and for the opportunity to speak in it. My right reverend friend the Bishop of Gloucester, lead Bishop for prisons, is unable to be here today. I know she wishes that she had been able to contribute. I share her interest in the welfare of prisoners and of those called to work in prisons, not least in the four prisons in my diocese in and around Doncaster.
Ministers have made plain their deep concern at the capacity problem in our prisons and have set out their plans to address it in both the short and longer term. I urge the Government to think deeply about the factors that have led us to this crisis and to respond creatively and boldly when considering the purpose of prison and the alternatives to custody. At their best, prisons are places of transformation. Every person supported to turn away from offending makes our country safer for everyone. But truly effective rehabilitation almost always takes place in a context of care and trust. It surely goes without saying that overcrowding in prisons is not conducive to a transformative culture.
Continue reading “Bishop of Sheffield highlights importance of prison staff and chaplains during debate on UK prison capacity”On 12th September 2024, the Bishop of St Albans tabled a question on the government’s assessment of the NFU Mutual’s recent rural crime report:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of NFU Mutual’s Rural Crime Report 2024, published on 1 August.
Lord Hanson of Flint (Lab, Home Office): I begin by thanking the National Farmers’ Union Mutual for its report. Rural crime can have a devastating effect on, and consequences for, countryside communities and the agricultural sector. That is why the Government are committed to reducing crime in rural areas. Under our proposed reforms, rural communities will be safeguarded, with tougher measures to clamp down on anti-social behaviour and strengthen neighbourhood policing, as well as stronger measures to prevent farm theft and fly-tipping.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about rural crime”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?
Continue reading “Bishop of Southwark asks about possibility of inquiry to address causes of recent social unrest”
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