On the 27th January 2016 the Bishop of Durham, the Rt Revd Paul Butler, spoke during the second day of the Report Stage of the Government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill. The Bishop spoke in support of an amendment in the name of Lord Best, to exclude supported housing from the proposed social housing rent reduction.
On 26th January 2016, the Bishop of St Albans, the Rt Revd Alan Smith, took part in the Second Reading debate of the Government’s Housing and Planning Bill. The Bishop raised concerns about the impact of the bill on rural affordable housing, right to buy, implications for local councils, and the effect of the Bill on Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities.
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I, too, add my congratulations to the noble Baroness, Lady Thornhill, and the noble Lord, Lord Thurlow, on their excellent maiden speeches.
I shall limit my comments to three areas. My first concern stems from the right-to-buy deal that has been agreed between the Government and the NHF, and the provisions within the Bill which will accommodate starter homes within affordable housing requirements. My concern is that housing which would once have been provided as affordable rented housing—affordable in perpetuity—will now be replaced by starter homes and homes to buy, with the only condition on their resale being that they be held off the market for a period of five years. Continue reading “Housing Bill: Bishop of St Albans raises concerns on rural housing and right to buy”
On 26th January 2016, the Bishop of Rochester, the Rt Revd James Langstaff, took part in the Second Reading debate of the Government’s Housing and Planning Bill. The Bishop raised concerns about the impact of the bill on affordable housing and lifetime secure tenancies. The Bishop of St Albans also spoke in the debate.
The Lord Bishop of Rochester: My Lords, I, too, welcome the opportunity to hear the maiden speeches of the noble Baroness, Lady Thornhill, and the noble Lord, Lord Thurlow. I look forward to the contributions that they will make to your Lordships’ House.
There is a clear view on all sides of this House, the other place and across large parts of the nation that more housing is needed. The questions concern whether this Bill will help to deliver that housing in the right way and in the right places for the people who need it most. Within my diocese at Ebbsfleet we have one of the largest single housing developments in the United Kingdom—a completely new development which will house up to 45,000 new people. While I have questions about some of the details of that development, and some of the details are as yet unknown, I am generally supportive of what is intended. So I am not against new development and I welcome those things in the Bill which may make that possible in appropriate ways. Continue reading “Housing Bill: Bishop of Rochester asks about affordable housing and lifetime secure tenancies”
On the 19th January 2016 the Second Church Estates Commissioner, the Rt Hon Caroline Spelman MP answered a written question relating to the Church Commissioners’ property developments in Peterborough.
Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what recent progress has been made on (a) residential development and (b) infrastructure planning on Church Commissioner land allocated as an urban extension by Peterborough City Council at (i) Paston Reserve and (ii) Norwood; and if she will make a statement. [21889]
Mrs Caroline Spelman: There are no further developments to report since the answer given by the Church Commissioners to question 16388 on the 20 November 2015.
(via Parliament.UK)
On 12th January 2016 the House of Lords considered the Government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill in its fifth and final day of Committee.
The Bishop of Rochester, Rt Revd James Langstaff, co-sponsored an amendment to clause 22 of the Bill, concerned with exceptions. The amendment, which was withdrawn after the debate, sought to exclude supported housing from the proposed 12% cuts in social housing rents.
The Lord Bishop of Rochester: My Lords, when I added my name to the amendment in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Best, I did so in the naive belief that we might be pushing at an open door. I still maintain that belief because I hope that the Minister will reassure us on some of these matters. I, too, cannot believe it was intentional that we would be threatening to undermine the housing provision for some of the most vulnerable people in our society. The two noble Lords who have just spoken have made many of the points which I would have made, and others have been made earlier this evening. Continue reading “Welfare Reform Bill: Bishop of Rochester backs amendment on supported housing”
On the 11th January 2016 Baroness Grender asked the Government “what steps they are taking to reduce the number of people who are sleeping rough”. Rt Revd James Langstaff, Bishop of Rochester, asked a supplementary question.
The Lord Bishop of Rochester: My Lords, in my capacity as chair of the charity Housing Justice, an interest that I declare, I am very aware of the work of church and community winter night shelters. Indeed, the organisation provides a charter mark for such initiatives. In the winter of 2014-15, these shelters used some 500 church and other buildings, including mosques and synagogues, to provide winter accommodation, along with tens of thousands of volunteers who welcomed several thousand guests. Sadly, this work is expanding, although I wish it were not. Perhaps I may invite the Minister to affirm the Government’s support for initiatives such as winter shelters not simply as places of temporary shelter but, more importantly, as places where homeless people can be assisted to find longer term, permanent solutions to their circumstances. Continue reading “Bishop of Rochester raises work of churches with rough sleepers”
On the 22nd December 2015 Baroness Lister of Burtersett asked Her Majesty’s Government “how they propose to respond to the results of the Evaluation of Removal of the Spare Room Subsidy: Final Report.” The Bishop of St Albans, the Rt Revd Alan Smith asked a supplementary question.
On 3rd December 2015 the House of Lords debated the Chancellor’s Spending Review and Autumn Statement. The Bishop of Portsmouth, Rt Revd Christopher Foster, spoke in the debate.
The Lord Bishop of Portsmouth: My Lords, the Chancellor in his Statement in the other place described this as a Government who do big things. I begin by acknowledging with gratitude the big decision to retract the proposals to alter the tax credit thresholds and taper rate. I spoke from these Benches not many weeks ago when we were assured that the Chancellor was listening. It would be possible to say more about that journey of listening leading to this big decision, but that might be churlish. I simply welcome the announcement. Continue reading “Bishop of Portsmouth responds to Autumn Statement on the economy”
On the 20th November 2015 the Second Church Estates Commissioner answered a written question about property development in Peterborough.
Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough): To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, for what reason the Church Commissioners have not released land for the construction of a primary school, in accordance with previous legal undertakings, at the Paston Reserve urban extension in Peterborough; and if she will make a statement.Mrs Caroline Spelman: The Church Commissioners are involved in the development of Paston Reserve in Peterborough. Within the development there is provision for a site and financial contributions towards the delivery of a primary school site as outlined within the agreed Section 106 legal agreement that accompanied the planning permission and that was varied by agreement with the Council in 2010. The Section 106 agreement provides that the primary school site must be delivered prior to any house occupation on the third phase of development on the site and also outlines the trigger points at which the financial contributions for the school will be provided. Continue reading “Church Commissioners Written Answer on property development in Peterborough”
On 17th November 2015 the House of Lords debated at Second Reading the Government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill. The Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, raised concerns about potential impact on vulnerable adults, both in the proposals for supported housing and for those receiving the Employment Support Allowance. The Bishop of Durham also spoke in the debate.
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I will pick up on some of the themes that have been raised by some of my noble friends who have spoken today, particularly on the area of vulnerable adults and those who are disabled. I invite the Government to think about two issues in particular. The first relates to the clause in the Bill legislating for a mandatory 1% annual reduction in social housing rents over the next four years. I, like other noble Lords, understand that the Government have their reasons for introducing this mandatory reduction, not least the considerable savings on housing benefits that such a rate reduction would deliver. I welcome the discretionary power that the Secretary of State will have to waive the requirement for rent reductions. This will go some way to protecting those housing associations which find themselves financially exposed due to circumstances outside their control. Continue reading “Welfare Reform Bill – Bishop of St Albans raises support for vulnerable adults”
The Church of England in Parliament 
You must be logged in to post a comment.