The Bishop of Durham received the following written answer on 21st December 2022:
The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to reduce (1) the waiting time for, and (2) the size of the loans available through, the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities’ budgeting loans scheme.
Continue reading “Bishop of Durham asks about improving access to budgeting loans”The Bishop of Durham received the following written answers of 19th December 2022:
The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government:
The Bishop of Durham received the following written answer on 19th December 2022:
The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the potential impact of expanding the Help to Save scheme to all Universal Credit claimants and broadening points of access to include credit unions and other providers of low-cost credit.
Lord Harlech (Con): Help to Save aims to support individuals to kickstart a regular, long-term savings habit and build a rainy-day savings fund by providing a generous government bonus on savings over four years.
Continue reading “Bishop of Durham asks about Help to Save scheme”The Bishop of Durham received the following written answer on 15th December 2022:
The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to increase regulation for unregulated digital Buy-Now-Pay-Later products; and if so, when they intend to introduce such measures.
Continue reading “Bishop of Durham asks about regulation of online credit offers”The Bishop of Durham received the following written answer on 14th December 2022:
The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Stedman-Scott on 8 November (HL2809), what support is available to individuals subject to No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) conditions as part of their total cost of living package of £37 billion this year, but excluding the Energy Bills Support Scheme.
Baroness Stedman-Scott (Con): In addition to the Government supporting those in receipt of public fund benefits with cost-of-living payments, the package also includes a range of measures that those with no recourse to public funds could also benefit from, if they meet the eligibility criteria.
Continue reading “Bishop of Durham asks about support for individuals with no recourse to public funds”The Bishop of Durham received the following written answer on 14th December 2022:
The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of the number of people likely to be granted resettlement in the UK for (1) the remainder of this year, and (2) the following two years thereafter.
Continue reading “Bishop of Durham asks about resettlement estimates for refugees”The Bishop of Durham spoke in a debate on 9th December 2022 led by the Archbishop of Canterbury, on the principles behind asylum and refugee policy.
The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, it is a pleasure to follow the noble Baroness, Lady Prashar. We are not often afforded the opportunity to look at asylum policy forensically and dispassionately, so I thank the most reverend Primate the Archbishop of Canterbury for choosing this debate. I also congratulate those who have given their maiden speeches today, and note my registered interests as a trustee of Reset and a principal of RAMP.
I begin by laying out clear principles that come from how ancient Israel was called to treat refugees: to welcome people, to treat them with dignity as fellow humans, to provide support, and to enable self-support and integration. It is no secret that we are not doing the mechanics of “welcome” through asylum processing well. The applications backlog means we are unable to prioritise those in need or humanely return those not recognised as refugees. There were close to 140,000 unanswered applications in the system by the end of September, so men, women and children were left in limbo and unable to rebuild their lives. This is not treating people with dignity. Chronic underinvestment in both people and systems at the Home Office has caused this, but there are workable solutions, such as to recruit more caseworkers and set up a dedicated case clearance unit that effectively triages.
Continue reading “Bishop of Durham -need for ‘courageous, compassionate leadership, not hostility and defensiveness’ in asylum policies”The Bishop of Durham received the following written answer on 8th December 2022:
The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government, further to the report by THEOS A Torn Safety Net, published on 7 November, what steps they are taking to support charities and organisations who have experienced a decline in volunteers and donations, and an increase in costs, as a result of the increased cost of living.
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con): We know that, as households and communities face rising prices, many charities and civil society organisations are contending with the same price increases themselves while also seeing more demand for their services.
With the support of His Majesty Government, charities and civil society organisations have shown significant resilience over the past two years, and will again be crucial in supporting people through the winter.
Continue reading “Bishop of Durham asks about support for community and voluntary organisations”The Bishop of Durham received the following written answer on 8th December 2022:
The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government how many children subject to No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) conditions are in receipt of the 15 hours a week of free early education available to disadvantaged two-year old children.
Continue reading “Bishop of Durham asks about funded early education for children of migrants with no recourse to public funds”The Bishop of Durham received the following written answer on 8th December 2022:
The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and relations between that country and Rwanda; and what steps, if any, they are taking to de-escalate that conflict.
Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park (Con): The UK condemns the escalation in fighting in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The Foreign Secretary has raised our concerns with both the President of DRC and the Foreign Minister of Rwanda; The Minister for Africa also recently spoke to the Rwandan Foreign Minister. We welcome agreement on a ceasefire as agreed at the Luanda summit in Angola on 23 November. It is vital that all parties implement it to secure a real de-escalation on the ground in Eastern DRC. We call on all sides to do everything they can to ensure armed groups respect the terms of the ceasefire and engage with the regional political processes, in order that an enduring political solution can be found.
Continue reading “Bishop of Durham asks about conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo”
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