international development – Page 2 – The Church of England in Parliament

Bishop of St Albans asks about strengthening overseas volunteering

The Bishop of St Albans asked a question regarding international development and volunteering on 12th July 2022:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, over the next few days more than a 1,000 overseas Anglican bishops will be arriving here for the Lambeth Conference. There are hundreds of links of volunteers going to many of the areas of the world which we are deeply concerned about, including parts of the Horn of Africa where there is famine and locusts have had a devastating impact. People are coming from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where Ebola is such a problem; these are people who are working on the ground. We already have many volunteer programmes of medics and others going in and out. Does the FCDO intend to meet some of those people who are coming here to see how we can strengthen other forms of volunteering, as well as some of the government schemes we have had in the past?

Bishop of Chichester asks about role of the Anglican Communion in international development

The Bishop of Chichester asked a question on the role of the Anglican Communion in supporting international development on 8th February 2022:

The Lord Bishop of Chichester: My Lords, parishes across England have links through the Anglican Communion with international communities where the issues of poverty, conflict and disease are most clearly felt. Those are shared by the people in our congregations in this land. As the bishops from the Anglican Communion gather for the Lambeth Conference this summer, I hope the Minister will enable us to present something about our nation’s international strategy for international development that will address some of the most crucial issues. First, there are the ways in which human rights are trampled on, particularly in the context of persecution of people for their faith—both Christian and other faiths. Secondly, there is the use of opportunities for partnership with the Anglian Communion in that strategy. Thirdly—

Bishop of St Albans asks about development and social cohesion in Ukraine

The Bishop of St Albans asked a question on the government’s efforts towards supporting development in Ukraine, during a debate on growing tensions between Russia and Ukraine on 26th January 2022:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, it is right that we attend to the situation in Russia, but Ukraine is a deeply divided country. The situation is not helped by, for example, Ukraine’s decision three years ago to make Ukrainian the national language, precluding the involvement of some 50% of Russians in the south and east of the country, who speak only Russian. What are Her Majesty’s Government doing to bring economic development and social cohesion to try to strengthen and bolster the life of Ukraine, as it faces this threat?

Bishop of St Albans urges commitment to international responses to refugee displacement

On 6th January 2022, the House of Lords debated the issue of mass refugee displacement. The Bishop of St Albans spoke in the debate, stressing the importance of a global response to help refugees and displaced people and address the causes of displacement:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I too thank the noble Lord, Lord Alton of Liverpool, for initiating this most important debate and for his excellent introduction, which has set the scene for us all.

We face not a static situation but one that is constantly changing. Since the start of 2020, we have seen the re-emergence of conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, bringing back the displacement that characterised the conflicts in the 1980s and 1990s. Ethiopia’s ongoing civil conflict has left just over 2 million internally displaced people in Tigray and a further 250,000 in the region of Amhara, according to the UN. We have seen the military coup in Myanmar, which has done nothing to improve—indeed, it has made worse—any prospect of resettling the estimated 745,000 beleaguered Rohingya Muslims resident in Cox’s Bazar, now the world’s largest refugee camp.

Bishop of St Albans stresses importance of supporting international development

The Bishop of St Albans spoke in a debate on international development on 16th December 2021, highlighting the benefits of supporting this development, especially regarding fair trade, education, democracy and the rule of law:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I too pay tribute to the noble Lord, Lord McConnell, for obtaining this really important debate and for his passionate and informed introduction, which set the scene so well for us.

The omicron variant is a powerful and topical reminder that there is only one world and only one human race. There are people around who want to make out the case that our concern for international development is an additional cost, something added on the side. Actually, when we truly grasp what it is about, it is a real win-win for us. Apart from it being morally right, it will make economic sense for us as well as helping us address many issues. For example, helping other countries to flourish and thrive will increase their health systems, address things such as the pandemic we currently face and even begin to address some of the issues of economic migrants, so it is vital for us.

Bishop of St Albans asks about expanding tertiary education to allow Britain to educate overseas doctors

The Bishop of St Albans asked a question on capacity to educate doctors from overseas as part of the Global Britain Initiative on 13th December 2021, during a debate on the amount of training places available in UK medical schools:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, this latest Covid omicron variant has made us realise that we are one human race, and we are now facing a scandal whereby we are relying on bringing in doctors from some of the poorest parts of the world to look after our needs. For centuries, this country was renowned for sending doctors and nurses abroad and founding hospitals in all parts of the world. What consideration have Her Majesty’s Government given to ensuring not only that we are producing enough of our own doctors =but that we are expanding our tertiary education and bringing in more people to send them back to help some of these countries as part of our global Britain initiative?

Bishop of Durham asks about vaccine donation in light of new Omicron variant of COVID-19

On 29th November 2021, the Bishop of Durham asked a question on plans for bilateral donation of vaccines, urging the government to commit to a global approach to vaccine donation:

The Lord Bishop of Durham: In the light of the new omicron variant that has dominated the news over the weekend, my colleague Archbishop Thabo Makgoba of Cape Town urged those of us in rich countries to do better at narrowing inequality of vaccination rates, which are 7% in Africa and 70% in Europe. We must acknowledge that this virus knows no national boundaries and will spread, mutate and return to us in the way that we are seeing, so we need a global approach, not simply a bilateral approach. Will Her Majesty’s Government’s commit to redoubling efforts to seek a truly global approach to vaccine donation to ensure that people in all nations are safer?

Bishop of Coventry asks about UK’s international development strategy

The Bishop of Coventry asked a question on plans relating to the UK’s international development strategy on 25th November 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Coventry: My Lords, the integrated review made many ambitious claims about the UK’s international role. I found it gave less away about the principles to meet those claims. Does the Minister accept that to be credible the new development strategy must be rooted in effective development principles, including the Paris declaration and the Accra agenda, and draw on the evidence of what works on the ground?

Bishop of Bristol speaks on importance of maintaining overseas aid

The Bishop of Bristol spoke in a debate on the Overseas Development Aid Budget on 27th October 2021, emphasising the importance of overseas aid in helping countries manage crises, climate initiatives, and public health measures:

The Lord Bishop of Bristol: My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Baroness, Lady Ritchie of Downpatrick, for initiating this short debate. Cuts to overseas aid continue to be of great concern to the Churches, which set the target of 0.7% at a meeting of the World Council of Churches in 1958. The target was then taken up by the United Nations in 1970.

The Government have now walked away from their own manifesto commitment to the 0.7% target and there are considerable concerns, as we have heard, that it may never be regained, despite the Chancellor’s announcement in today’s Budget. Meanwhile, as we have also heard, there are increasing needs for aid, not least because of Covid and climate change. As the most reverend Primate the Archbishop of Canterbury said in response to recent cuts:

“Reducing our overseas aid commitment at this critical time is morally wrong, politically foolish and an act of national self-harm.”

Bishop of Worcester asks about cuts to overseas development aid

The Bishop of Worcester asked a question on cuts to the UK’s overseas development aid, with particular regard to the impact on recipients of aid and on our leadership in international development, on 14th July 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Worcester: My Lords, the Chancellor’s Statement published on Monday finally outlined the meaning of the much-repeated but undefined government line that 0.7% aid spending would be restored when the fiscal situation allows. Will the Minister accept that to many working in the field of international development, these criteria point to a permanent rather than a temporary cut in overseas development, which in any case was due to change and has changed because it is a percentage of gross national income? Does the Minister recognise that this decision represents a terrible sentence, probably of death, for thousands of children and risks doing untold reputational damage to Britain’s leadership in international development?

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