On 6th March 2024, the House of Lords debated the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill in the final day of the report stage. Votes were held on amendments to the bill, in which bishops took part:
On 4th March 2024, the House of Lords debated the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill in the first day of the report stage. The Bishop of St Edmundsbury & Ipswich spoke in the debate, supporting amendments on assessing Rwanda’s safety, establishing right of return for asylum seekers after relocation, and protection for victims of modern slavery:
The Lord Bishop of St Edmundsbury & Ipswich: My Lords, I shall speak in favour of Amendments 1, 3 and 5 tabled by the noble Baroness, Lady Chakrabarti, to which I have added my name. I do not believe that we can enshrine in law a statement of fact without seeing and understanding the evidence that shows such a statement to be true, in particular when such a statement of fact is so contentious and for which the evidence may change. Ignoring for a second the strange absurdity of such declarations, we must also consider the real impact that this could have on the potentially vulnerable people whom the Government intend to send to Rwanda. As my most reverend friend the Archbishop of Canterbury, who is in his place, said at Second Reading,
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The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 4th March 2024:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Bangladesh in response to its statement on 7 February that it will not allow any more Rohingya refugees to enter the country.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about recent statement by Bangladesh concerning Rohingya refugees”The Bishop of Leicester asked a question about the difficulties involved transferring funds to Sudan to aid displaced refugees, in particular the Sudanese Archbishop of Khartoum, on 29th February 2024:
The Lord Bishop of Leicester: My Lords, the Archbishop of Khartoum has been forced to leave his home, along with his family and many of his people; they are now living in exile in Port Sudan. The Church of England dioceses with links to Sudan have tried to transfer funds to support the archbishop and his people, only to discover that banks are either unwilling or unable to transfer funds to Sudan. What assessment have the Government made of the banks’ willingness or ability to transfer funds in support of people who are suffering so terribly?
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The Bishop of Chelmsford received the following written answer on 7th February 2024:
The Lord Bishop of Chelmsford asked His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that residents on the Bibby Stockholm can access outside space and the surrounding community without requiring inspection by staff or the use of scanners each time.
Continue reading “Bishop of Chelmsford asks about conditions for migrants on the Bibby Stockholm barge”The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 5th February 2024:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking, in their capacity as penholder for Myanmar at the UN Security Council, to help find solutions to the Rohingya refugee crisis, and particularly to create the conditions necessary for safe, dignified, and voluntary repatriation of Rohingya refugees to Myanmar.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about UK efforts to help resolve the Rohingya refugee crisis”The Bishop of Chelmsford received the following written answer on 31st Janaury 2024:
The Lord Bishop of Chelmsford asked His Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Sharpe of Epsom on 11 December 2023 (HL597), how often is the doctor at the onsite primary healthcare available to hold in-person consultations for residents.
Continue reading “Bishop of Chelmsford asks about medical care for migrant detainees at MOD Wethersfield”On 29th January 2024, the House of Lords debated the the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum & Immigration) Bill. The Bishop of Durham spoke in the debate, questioning, based on his experience of the country through his role as Bishop, whether Rwanda would be able to adequately support refugees relocated from the UK, and highlighting the risks to refugees in the country, particularly in terms of modern slavery:
The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, I declare my interests as laid out in the register. I stand in agreement with the arguments already made regarding the domestic constitutional, international standing and human rights concerns surrounding this Bill. I echo the belief that we should not outsource our moral and legal responsibilities to refugees and asylum seekers. However, today I hope to bring some insight to this debate through my own experience of Rwanda.
Rwanda is a country that I love. It is a country that I have travelled to on 20 occasions since 1997. I have observed the amazing transformation of Kigali and some aspects of the whole nation. My visits take me to rural villages, small towns and cities, not simply the glamour of a great international city. I have had the privilege of becoming friends with many local people whom I have met and stayed with there. The conversations I had there last August further led me to conclude that this policy will simply not work.
Continue reading “Safety of Rwanda (Asylum & Immigration) Bill: Bishop of Durham questions support for refugees available in Rwanda and raises risks of modern slavery”The Archbishop of Canterbury spoke in a debate on the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum & Immigration) Bill on 29th January 2024, expressing concern that the legislation would be damaging to the UK in outsourcing asylum to another country, calling on the government to establish a wider strategy for refugee policy and to lead internationally on this:
The Lord Archbishop of Canterbury: My Lords, in almost every tradition of global faith and humanism around the world, the dignity of the individual is at the heart of what is believed. In the Christian tradition, we are told to welcome the stranger. Jesus said:
“I was a stranger and you invited me in”.
In numerous places in the Old Testament and the New, the commands of God are to care for the alien and stranger. It has already been said, and I agree, that the way that this Bill and its cousin, which we debated in the summer, work is by obscuring the truth that all people, asylum seekers included, are of great value. We can, as a nation, do better than this Bill.
Continue reading “Safety of Rwanda (Asylum & Immigration) Bill: Archbishop of Canterbury raises concerns over potential damaging impact of legislation”On 18th January 2024, in Grand Committee during a debate on refugee integration, Bishop of Durham gave a speech on the importance of community support for refugees, particularly in access to housing under the government’s current policy, asking whether the government would extend the current “move on” period for refugees leaving home office accommodation:
The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, I declare my interests as laid out in the register.
Successful integration into life in the UK is critical for refugees to rebuild their lives, enabling society to benefit from the valuable skills that they bring as a gift to this country. However, current policy makes integration difficult, leaving them with very little support, particularly in the early period.
My friend the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of London raised the 28-day move-on period in this House last month and in a letter to the Home Office with other faith leaders. I echo her concerns. Current policy gives refugees 28 days from the issuing of a biometric residence permit until they can no longer access asylum support and accommodation. In practice, refugees are often given much shorter notice to find accommodation and means to support themselves.
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