On 15th September 2021, the House of Lords debated the Environment Bill on the fourth day of the report stage. Votes were held on amendments to the bill, in which a Bishop took part:
Votes: Environment Bill
Tag: environment
Environment Bill: Bishop of Manchester urges increased protection for ecological sites
On 13th September 2021, the House of Lords debated the Environment Bill in the third day of the report stage. The Bishop of Manchester spoke in the debate, advocating for limits on government powers to reduce terms of protection for ecological sites:
The Lord Bishop of Manchester: My Lords, I draw attention to my interest as a Church Commissioner, as set out in the register, and I wish to support what the noble Baroness just said: 30 years is rather a short period of time. I am grateful for the way the Minister, in proposing Amendments 86 and 88, is showing us the possibility of some flexibility in the future, but may I just tempt him a little further?
Continue reading “Environment Bill: Bishop of Manchester urges increased protection for ecological sites”Votes: Environment Bill
On 13th September 2021, the House of Lords debated the Environment Bill in the report stage. Votes were held on amendments to the bill, in which Bishops took part:
Bishop of Oxford asks about timeline for government support and information on net-zero building
The Bishop of Oxford asked a question on the government’s planned timeline for introducing support and information for those working to help buildings meet net-zero targets on 9th September 2021:
The Lord Bishop of Oxford: My Lords, I thank the Minister for his Answer. As your Lordships may be aware, the Church of England has declared a climate emergency and is aiming for net zero by 2030. In the diocese of Oxford, we are stewards of 470 parsonages and many other buildings. We have a lot of work to do, and a lot of investment is required to bring those buildings to net zero. Two things are preventing us making progress; we clearly need to spread the work over a decade. The first is knowing the Government’s plans for home heating and the second is the help and support that will be available from government for those changes. The system needs to be simple and sustainable and to carry confidence. When will we know the way forward?
Continue reading “Bishop of Oxford asks about timeline for government support and information on net-zero building”Environment Bill: Bishop of Oxford supports amendments centering environmental impact
On 8th September 2021, the House of Lords debated the Environment Bill in the second day of the report stage. The Bishop of Oxford spoke in support of two amendments intended to ensure that future decision making in this area would have regard to environmental principles first and foremost, and a further amendment ensuring the independence of the Office for Environmental Protection:
The Lord Bishop of Oxford: My Lords, I shall speak in favour of Amendments 19 and 20, and passionately so.
Many members of your Lordships’ House have spoken of the urgency of the crisis before us; just yesterday, the most reverend Primate the Archbishop of Canterbury, Pope Francis and the Ecumenical Patriarch issued a powerful joint statement. They appealed to those with “far-reaching responsibilities”—including ourselves—to
“make short-term sacrifices to safeguard all our futures; become leaders in the transition to just and sustainable economies.”
There can be no exceptions.
Continue reading “Environment Bill: Bishop of Oxford supports amendments centering environmental impact”Votes: Environment Bill
On 8th September 2021, the House of Lords debated the Environment Bill in the report stage. Votes were held on amendments to the bill, in which a Bishop took part:
Environment Bill: Bishop of Manchester supports amendments to preserve biodiversity
On 7th July 2021, the House of Lords debated the Environment Bill in the sixth day of the Committee stage. The Bishop of Manchester spoke in the debate, in support of a group of amendments aimed at preserving and protecting biodiversity in terms of land use regulations:
The Lord Bishop of Manchester: My Lords, I draw your Lordships’ attention to my interests as set out in the register, specifically with the Church Commissioners—a significant owner of agricultural and development land. On matters of climate change, we are a leading edge and an awarding-winning investor, yet the Bill reminds us that climate is only part of the story.
Continue reading “Environment Bill: Bishop of Manchester supports amendments to preserve biodiversity”Environment Bill: Bishop of Gloucester speaks in favour of establishing an independent body to scrutinise climate efforts
On 30th June 2021, the House of Lords debated the Environment Bill in the fourth day of the Committee Stage. The Bishop of Gloucester spoke, welcoming the bill and, on behalf of the Bishop of Oxford, expressed support for amendments aimed at ensuring independent scrutiny of government climate progress:
The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: My Lords, I add my voice in support of Amendments 105 and 107, and I shall speak to those amendments together. My right reverend friend the Lord Bishop of Oxford would have spoken to them, but is unable to be here, so I am glad to be able to speak and endorse what other noble Lords have said.
From this Bench, we welcome much of the content of the Bill, and we believe deeply in the importance of the good stewardship of creation. We recognise the need for global solutions to an international challenge and that any solutions will take leadership and require harmonising regulation on a global scale. As others have said, it is essential that the new OEP be given the appropriate teeth—not dentures, perhaps jaws—to hold business and government at all levels, national, regional and local, to account.
Continue reading “Environment Bill: Bishop of Gloucester speaks in favour of establishing an independent body to scrutinise climate efforts”Church Commissioner Questions -worship, choral singing, bereavement support, marriage, rewilding, tree planting, net zero targets, regenerative agriculture, Westminster Abbey
On 17th June 2021 MPs put questions to Andrew Selous MP, Second Church Estates Commissioner. Text of the oral and written answers is below.
Oral Questions
Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con): Whether the Church of England plans to support online and in-person communal worship as covid-19 restrictions are lifted. (901321)
The Second Church Estates Commissioner (Andrew Selous): The Church of England is strongly encouraging churches to support both in-person and online communal worship, and training has been given to thousands of clergy to enable this. It is up to local churches to decide how best to do this.
Bishop of St Albans calls for greater recognition of the importance of rural economies and agriculture to food security
The Bishop of St Albans spoke in a debate on a recent Food, Poverty, Health and the Environment Committee report on 10th June 2021, highlighting the intersection between food security, health outcomes, and overall inequality, and the importance of agriculture and rural economies in levelling-up food production :
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I warmly welcome the former Archbishop of York, the noble and right reverend Lord, Lord Sentamu, on behalf of these Benches and the whole House. It is a great privilege to follow him in today’s debate, on his return to the House, and I am sure that his wisdom, compassion, and insight, will be valuable as we move forward in this new parliamentary session.
Hungry for Change outlines the challenges in health and production underlying our food system. Like others, I pay tribute to Marcus Rashford for his campaign last summer in extending the national voucher scheme. I also wish him and the entire English football team good fortune for their opening Euro 2021 match against Croatia this Sunday.
Food poverty remains a serious issue here in the UK, one which has been exacerbated by the economic hardships endured by low-income individuals during the Covid crisis. The Department for Work and Pensions HBAI statistics for 2020 identify 5 million people, including 1.7 million children, as experiencing food insecurity, and half of them had very low food security.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans calls for greater recognition of the importance of rural economies and agriculture to food security”
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