Tag: foreign affairs

Bishop of Southwark asks Government about humanitarian situation in Gaza

southwark-20feb17On 11th July 2017 the Bishop of Southwark, Rt Revd Christopher Chessun, received a written answer to a question on the supply of electricity in Palestine:

The Lord Bishop of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, what steps they are taking to respond to the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza, following the decision by the government of Israel to implement a request from the Palestinian Authority to reduce the flow of electricity supplies from Israel to Gaza. Continue reading “Bishop of Southwark asks Government about humanitarian situation in Gaza”

Bishop of Southwark asks Government about political reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah

On 11th July 2017 the Bishop of Southwark, Rt Revd Christopher Chessun, received a written answer to a question on political reconciliation in Palestine:

The Lord Bishop of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to encourage political reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah. Continue reading “Bishop of Southwark asks Government about political reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah”

Bishop of St Albans asks Government about persecution of religious and ethnic minorities in Iran

On 6th July 2017 the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, received a written answer to a question on persecution of religious and ethnic minorities in Iran:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the Republic of Iran concerning the continuing persecution of religious and ethnic minorities, as described in the Annual report of the UN Secretary-General to the Human Rights Council submitted on 13 March, Situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran A/HRC/34/40. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about persecution of religious and ethnic minorities in Iran”

Bishop of Chester on the Balfour Declaration

On 5th July 2017 the House of Lords held a short debate on a question from Lord Turnberg, “To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to mark the centenary of the Balfour Declaration in November.” The Bishop of Chester, Rt Revd Peter Forster, spoke in the debate.

The Lord Bishop of Chester: My Lords, I want to make two points in my two-penn’orth of time.

First, the Balfour Declaration did not arise in a vacuum and in part reflected the very considerable contribution made by Jewish people, mainly recent immigrants of course, to Britain and the then war effort. To take an obvious example, it was a Jewish chemist at the University of Manchester who devised a clever new way to manufacture acetone from sugar and carbohydrate. It was a vital chemical in short supply for the manufacture of cordite. That chemist, Chaim Weizmann, went on to become the first President of the State of Israel. Continue reading “Bishop of Chester on the Balfour Declaration”

Bishop of Chester says soft power crucial to future UK influence in Middle East

On 4th July 2017 Lord Howell of Guildford moved “that this House takes note of the Report from the International Relations Committee The Middle East: Time for a New Realism (2nd Report, Session 2016–17 HL Paper 159).” The Bishop of Chester, Rt Revd Peter Forster, spoke in the debate:

The Lord Bishop of Chester: My Lords, in my contribution to our debate on these complex matters, I will comment on two areas. I do so with great appreciation for the report, so comprehensively introduced by the noble Lord, Lord Howell. It is full of excellent, empirical detail. We ought also to pay attention to certain overarching factors or narratives.

For my first point, I go back 30 years to the excellent BBC series presented by the historian John Roberts, “The Triumph of the West”. A book of that ​title was published to accompany the series. I reread it recently and thought how perceptive and prescient it was. Perhaps politically correct censors would not allow the title these days, but John Roberts’ compelling thesis was that the essential message of contemporary history was the dominance and penetration of western civilisation, driven on by the power unleashed by modern science. The term “globalisation” had yet to be coined, but in part of course it names the phenomenon. Modern science derives from western European civilisation from the 16th century onwards and carries many of the implicit assumptions of our culture. John Roberts’ name is not as well known these days as it should be. I knew him a little because he was a history don and later warden of my old college, Merton, although in those days I was an unreconstructed and perhaps even reprobate chemist. Sadly, he died prematurely but his works are still worth reading again, as I say. Continue reading “Bishop of Chester says soft power crucial to future UK influence in Middle East”

Caroline Spelman raises Christian persecution worldwide and blasphemy case in Pakistan

On 4th July 2017 the House of Commons debated a motion from Jim Shannon MP (DUP), ‘That this House has considered persecution of Christians and the role of UK embassies.’ The Second Church Estates Commissioner, Rt Hon Dame Caroline Spelman MP, spoke in the debate:

Dame Caroline Spelman (Meriden) (Con): Thank you, Mr Hanson, for calling me because I omitted to put in to speak last night, for which I apologise. It was an oversight, but one that I should not have committed.

An interesting cross-section of Members of Parliament is in attendance to support my hon. Friend the Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) who, as chair of the all-party group on international freedom of religion or belief, had the foresight to call for this debate. We welcome to the Chamber new Members who are showing their concern for the persecuted, and returning Members who we know through their faith will take a stand for the persecuted. As my hon. Friend the Member for Torbay (Kevin Foster) so eloquently put it, we are all here to show our solidarity, and that is the important point. Some Members may not even speak, but we are numerous and we wish the persecuted out there to know that. Continue reading “Caroline Spelman raises Christian persecution worldwide and blasphemy case in Pakistan”

Bishop of Truro warns against seeing aid as only a financial investment

Bishop of TruroOn the 3rd July 2017, the Bishop of Truro, the Rt Revd Tim Thornton contributed to Baroness D’Souza’s debate: That this House takes note of the case for measuring the impact of the United Kingdom’s development aid budget. In a wide-ranging speech, the Bishop spoke of the importance of guarding against thinking about aid spending simply as a financial investment.

The Lord Bishop of Truro: My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Baroness, Lady D’Souza, for initiating this debate on such a very important and topical issue.

As no doubt we will hear from other speakers, the UK is known around the world as a leader in international development. It has achieved great results during the past two decades. I have no doubt of the importance of the case for measuring the impact of our development aid. I want to underline that case and also, perhaps more importantly for me, to ensure that we try to measure the right things if we can and do not understand aid only as a financial investment which can be measured simply in financial terms. I fear that too many people in our debate will go immediately from talking about aid to talking about money and finances rather than going back and thinking about what the word “development” might mean. It seems that development is in itself a fascinating idea in our world today with perhaps an assumption that other countries are less developed than we are. We must be careful about the assumptions and presuppositions we make when we use the word.​

Continue reading “Bishop of Truro warns against seeing aid as only a financial investment”

Bishop of Coventry asks about blasphemy laws in Pakistan

Bp Coventry May 2015On the 3rd July 2017, the Bishop of Coventry, the Rt Revd Dr Christopher Cocksworth received an answer to a written question about the death sentence for blasphemy in Pakistan.

Lord Bishop of Coventry: Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Pakistan regarding the death sentence handed down by Pakistan’s Anti-Terrorism Court on 10 June to Taimoor Raza, a Shi’a Muslim, for allegedly committing blasphemy on Facebook.

Continue reading “Bishop of Coventry asks about blasphemy laws in Pakistan”

Bishop of Coventry asks about ongoing detention of Eritrean Orthodox Patriarch

Bp Coventry May 2015On the 3rd July 2017, the Bishop of Coventry, the Rt Revd Dr Christopher Cocksworth received an answer to a written question on the detention of the Eritrean Orthodox Patriarch.

Lord Bishop of Coventry: Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Eritrea regarding the ongoing detention of the Eritrean Orthodox Patriarch Abune Antonios.

Continue reading “Bishop of Coventry asks about ongoing detention of Eritrean Orthodox Patriarch”

Bishop of Coventry asks about blasphemy laws in Indonesia

On 29th June 2017 the Bishop of Coventry, Rt Revd Christopher Cocksworth, received a written answer to a question on blasphemy laws in Indonesia:

The Lord Bishop of Coventry asked Her Majesty’s Government: what representations they have made to the government of Indonesia in respect of Indonesia’s blasphemy laws following the two-year prison sentence handed down on 9 May to Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, the former Christian Governor of Jakarta, for allegedly committing blasphemy against Islam. Continue reading “Bishop of Coventry asks about blasphemy laws in Indonesia”