The Bishop of Southwark received the following written answer on 9th March 2026:
The Lord Bishop of Southwark asked His Majesty’s Government what plans they have for the funding of the BBC World Service from 1 April 2026.
Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab, FCDO): Grant-in-Aid funding for the next three years for the BBC World Service will be decided through the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office allocations process, and announced in advance of the 2026/27 financial year.
The Bishop of Southwark received the following written answer on 6th March 2026:
The Lord Bishop of Southwark asked His Majesty’s Government
The Bishop of Southwark received the following written answers on 23rd February 2026:
The Lord Bishop of Southwark asked His Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel about the repair of graves in the Gaza war cemetery in al-Tuffah.
Continue reading “Bishop of Southwark asks about reconstruction in Gaza and the Occupied Palestinian Territories”The Bishop of Southwark received the following written answer on 12th February 2026:
The Lord Bishop of Southwark asked His Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the government of Israel about the killing of three Palestinian journalists by a targeted strike on a vehicle on 21 January.
Continue reading “Bishop of Southwark asks about killing of Palestinian journalists”
The Bishop of Southwark spoke following a government statement preceding the committee debate on the bill, asking that, should the bill fall, a royal commission on dying well be considered:
The Lord Bishop of Southwark: My Lords, I too wish to speak in good faith. That is what all our Committee consideration has been about, in almost every speech I have heard and listened to—and I have made an effort to attend a good number of sittings. I am very grateful to the Government Chief Whip for what he has said. I am also very grateful to the noble and learned Lord, Lord Falconer, for saying on the “Today” programme that he now anticipates that the Bill will fall. So my question is: if and when it does, please will the need for a royal commission on dying well be factored into consideration?
The Bishop of Southwark received the following written answer on 26th January 2026:
The Lord Bishop of Southwark asked His Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Twycross on 16 September 2025 (HL10149), what plans they have to disburse all the remaining funds in the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme by raising the cap on individual claims retrospectively in the final weeks of the scheme.
Continue reading “Bishop of Southwark asks about Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme”The Bishop of Southwark received the following written answer on 13th January 2026:
The Bishop of Southwark asked His Majesty’s Government:
The Bishop of Southwark received the following written answer on 5th January 2026:
The Lord Bishop of Southwark asked His Majesty’s Government, following the arrest of an archbishop in Armenia on 4 December, what assessment they have made of religious freedom in that country, and what discussions they have had with the government of Armenia about that issue.
Continue reading “Bishop of Southwark asks about religious freedom in Armenia”The Bishop of Southwark received the following written answer on 16th September 2025:
The Lord Bishop of Southwark asked His Majesty’s Government whether they are considering using the underspend in the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme to lift the cap on individual claims in the second half of the 2025–26 financial year.
Continue reading “Bishop of Southwark asks about Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme”The Bishop of Southwark spoke at the second reading of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill on 12th September 2025, expressing concern regarding the effects of the bill on vulnerable members of society, and the sanctity of human life:
The Lord Bishop of Southwark: My Lords, I acknowledge with deep respect that those arguing for the passage of this Bill are often speaking from personal experience of the pain and suffering of someone’s final illness. Yet, along with many other speakers, I have deep concerns about legislating to permit the practice of assisted dying. I caution the House against the remedy of choice in this area. My concern is that those who are most vulnerable in society will become more vulnerable should this Bill find its way on to the statute book.
Related to this, and as a Bishop, I wish to say something on the subject of life, which I believe we must consider in any Bill making provisions for its termination. In the Old Testament, the principal word for life is the Hebrew word “hayim”, a plural noun. This expression signifies both our physical life and our source in God, who is the source of all life. It is a relational term, and, like most societies until our own age, it reflects a view of life as a gift and one lived out with others. It is a sign of the deep richness of the journey of life, which, of course, encompasses mortality and the finality that takes us to our very last breath. We need to be immensely careful in supporting a departure from the practice and wisdom of centuries.
Continue reading “Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill: Bishop of Southwark raises concerns on effects of bill on vulnerable members of society”
The Church of England in Parliament 
You must be logged in to post a comment.