criminal justice – Page 9 – The Church of England in Parliament

Offenders (Day of Release from Detention) Bill: Bishop of Leeds speaks in favour of changes to prison release procedures

On 21st April 2023, the Bishop of Leeds spoke in support of the Offenders (Day of Release from Detention) Bill, which would ensure that people are not released from prison on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday in order to ensure proper access to services and support:

The Lord Bishop of Leeds: My Lords, I am grateful for the opportunity to rise in the gap to sing from the same hymn sheet and welcome this Bill. I congratulate the noble Lord, Lord Bird, on his inspirational work and commitment to these matters. We need an urgent change in practice for those who leave prison. I know that my friend the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Gloucester, who is not able to be here today but leads for the Church of England on prisons, also welcomes this Bill.

Bishop of Derby asks about government’s anti-social behaviour plan

The Bishop of Derby asked a question on the issue of criminalisation of children during a debate on the government’s anti-social behaviour plan on 29th March 2023:

The Lord Bishop of Derby: My Lords, I declare my interest as vice-chair of the Children’s Society. I read the Anti-Social Behaviour Action Plan with real interest. Criminalising young people through tackling anti-social behaviour is counterproductive, not least given the pressures on the criminal justice system. I am therefore pleased to see a focus on preventive work with at-risk and vulnerable children with expanded funding for youth offending teams, for example. Can the Minister commit to look again at a definition of child criminal exploitation that recognises the abuse and manipulation of vulnerable children, which catches them up into what can become quite horrific spirals of crime? Such a definition would offer them greater protection.

Bishop of St Albans asks about prosecutions for female genital mutilation

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 29th March 2023:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Sharpe of Epsom on 14 March (HL6096), what assessment they have made of why there have only been two prosecutions for female genital mutilation out of the 229 offences recorded.

Bishop of Derby asks about treatment of children in the criminal justice system

The Bishop of Derby asked a question on the treatment of children in the criminal justice system on 27th March 2023, following a Children’s Commissioners report on the strip searching of children, many from black and minority ethnic backgrounds, by police:

The Lord Bishop of Derby: My Lords, I declare an interest as vice-chair of the Children’s Society. I join other noble Lords in expressing horror at the findings of the Children’s Commissioner’s report. It is vital that children are treated as children at all times. Can the Minister reassure the House that children are treated and recognised as children within every aspect of the criminal justice system?

Bishop of St Albans asks about reported instances of stop and search in Hertfordshire

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 6th February 2023:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government how many reported instances of stop-and-search occurred in Hertfordshire in (1) 2022, (2) 2021, (3) 2020, and (4) 2019.

Lord Sharpe of Epsom (Con): The Home Office collects and publishes stop and search data on a financial year basis. The table below shows the number of stop and searches recorded by Hertfordshire Constabulary in the last four financial years. This includes searches under section 1 of the Policing and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (and associated legislation) and section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994.

Bishop of Gloucester asks about Royal Commission on Criminal Justice

The Bishop of Gloucester received the following written answer on 13th December 2022:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester asked His Majesty’s Government, further to the remarks by Lord Bellamy on 28 November (HL Deb col 1561), what plans they have to announce (1) the timeframe, and (2) the terms of reference, for the Royal Commission on the criminal justice process, as announced in the Queen’s Speech on 19 December 2019.

Bishop of Gloucester asks about implementation of the Lammy Review

On 28th November 2022, the Bishop of Gloucester asked what progress the government had made towards implementing the recommendations of the 2017 Lammy Review:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: To ask His Majesty’s Government what progress they have made towards implementing the Lammy Review, published on 8 September 2017.

Lord Bellamy (Con, Ministry of Justice): My Lords, the Lammy Review, which the Government warmly welcomed, made 35 recommendations and the Government undertook actions in respect of 33 of them; only two others relating to the judiciary were left on one side. We have now completed 29 out of the 33, and outstanding actions continue in respect of the remaining four. Since the Lammy Review in 2017, our work has evolved considerably and the Government’s Inclusive Britain strategy, published in March this year, is central to this work.

Bishop of Guildford asks about gender-based violence

The Bishop of Guildford asked a question about gender-based violence during a debate on Rape: Criminal Prosecutions, on 28th June 2022:

The Lord Bishop of Guildford: My Lords, gender-based violence has been a major theme in our discussions across the Anglican Communion, from a wide range of cultures. Many international communities look to the United Kingdom to lead in this area, given the deeply traumatising effect that such violence can have—obviously on the victims but also on whole communities over generations.

Queens Speech: Bishop of Gloucester speaks on criminal justice

On 12th May 2022, the House of Lords debated the Queen’s speech. The Bishop of Gloucester spoke in the debate:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: My Lords, it is wonderful to be speaking in this debate on Her Majesty’s gracious Speech. It is always a privilege to listen to the noble and learned Lord, Lord Judge, who is a very hard act to follow. I refer to my interest stated in the register as Anglican bishop of prisons.

As has been said, we know that people are increasingly experiencing hardship in our current climate. In the gracious Speech there was an emphasis on so-called levelling up and tackling disadvantage, whether rooted in education, health, a lack of appropriate housing or low income. Often those issues intersect.

Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Bishop of Gloucester supports amendment to review criminal sentencing

On 12th January 2022, the House of Lords debated amendments to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. The Bishop of Gloucester spoke in support of an amendment tabled by Lord Marks of Henley on Thames which would establish a royal commission to review criminal sentencing:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: My Lords, I fully support the amendment. Sometimes I feel a bit as if I am in “Groundhog Day” as we listen to things that are said again and again. When we first discussed the Bill in this House, many people far more learned than me commented on all the issues with the Bill and the fact that so much of it is piecemeal—that we are trying to put sticking plasters over things without looking at the issues holistically and without looking at evidence. So much of it seems to be a reaction—often to populist headlines, let us be honest. There is so much evidence that we are not looking at, and so much of what we are discussing is not backed up by the evidence.

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: