Tag: St Albans

Bishop of St Albans calls for better coordination to improve Troubled Families programme

St Albans 2On 12th September 2016 Baroness Massey of Darwen asked the Government “how they will respond to the unpublished report on the effectiveness of the Troubled Families programme.” The Lord Bishop of St Albans, the Rt Revd Alan Smith, asked a follow-up question.

Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, one of the successes of this programme, which I have seen in a number of places, has been to try to get proper co-ordination. With so many different silos addressing this and so many resources going to a limited number of families, one success has been the way that progress has been made by bringing real focus and integration. Can the Minister assure us that that lesson has been learned and that we will continue to see how we can get movement on this relatively small but very problematic and difficult group, and find the way forward? Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans calls for better coordination to improve Troubled Families programme”

Bishop of St Albans asks Government about state pensions for British citizens overseas

Bishop St Albans June 2015On the 9th September 2016 the Bishop of St Albans, the Rt Revd Alan Smith, received an answer to three written questions about state pensions of British citizens overseas.

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to review their policy of freezing state pensions of British citizens residing in overseas countries, where there is no existing reciprocal social security arrangement in place. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about state pensions for British citizens overseas”

Bishop of St Albans speaks in debate on school admissions

On 8th September 2016, Lord Lucas led a short debate on the question to Her Majesty’s Government: “what plans they have to support parents in navigating schools’ admissions arrangements”. The Rt Revd Dr Alan Smith, Bishop of St Albans, contributed to the debate. 

StAlbans171115The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I am also grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Lucas, for bringing this Question to the House for debate. The right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Ely normally takes the lead on these matters but he is unable to be here today, so I want to make just a few comments. The subject of admissions is a complex one. As a child’s education is so vital and important, not surprisingly it often leads to impassioned responses. That can be true of the subject of admission to church schools, on which I know that several Members of this House have expressed opinions in the past. Before I turn directly to the topic of faith-based admissions, which your Lordships will not be surprised I wish to address, I would like briefly to set out some points by way of context. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans speaks in debate on school admissions”

Bishop of St Albans leads debate on banking reform

On 8th September 2016 the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, led a debate in the House of Lords: “To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of progress towards implementing the recommendations contained within the report of the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards, Changing banking for good.”

The Bishop’s opening speech is below, followed by the response of the Minister. Other members spoke in the debate, including the Archbishop of Canterbury (speech here) who had served on the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards.

Bishop St Albans June 2015The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I start this debate by saying how pleased I am to see the Minister responding today in his last time in his present role, although I look forward to working with him when he takes up his new duties at DCMS.

We are now three years on from the publication of the parliamentary commission’s report Changing Banking for Good. Thanks to the decisions made by this and previous Governments, our banking system is taking tentative but important steps along the road to recovery. We must not forget, however, the blunt summary in the report which laid out the scale of the problems with banks over the previous decade:

“Banks in the UK have failed in many respects. They have failed taxpayers, who had to bail out a number of banks including some major institutions, with a cash outlay peaking at £133 billion, equivalent to more than £2,000 for every person in the UK. They have failed many retail customers, with widespread product mis-selling. They have failed their own shareholders, by delivering poor long-term returns and destroying shareholder value. They have failed in their basic function to finance economic growth, with businesses unable to obtain the loans that they need at an acceptable price”.

Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans leads debate on banking reform”

Bishop of St Albans questions government about executive pay

St Albans 2On 8th September 2016, the Bishop of St Albans, the Rt Revd Dr Alan Smith, asked Her Majesty’s Government “how they intend to address the gap between the remuneration of senior executives and their employees”. Baroness Neville-Rolfe responded for the Government. Her comments can be seen below, along with the follow up questions from other Members.

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they intend to address the gap between the remuneration of senior executives and their employees.

Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans questions government about executive pay”

Bishop of St Albans asks Government about building on brownfield sites

St Albans 2On the 21st July 2016 Lord Greaves asked Her Majesty’s Government “what progress they are making in encouraging the development of brownfield sites.” Rt Revd Alan Smith, Bishop of St Albans, asked a follow up question:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: This is not just about housing, important though that is—not least the fact that we are not building enough homes, especially affordable and starter homes; it is also about how we will solve some very difficult, long-term environmental problems relating to brownfield sites. Does the Minister agree that this really is an area where, for example, the housing association sector, with some quite focused work and grants, can make a huge difference both in solving environmental problems and in making a significant contribution to our housing shortage?

Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks Government about building on brownfield sites”

Bishop of St Albans says uncertainty and insecurity faces British farming as a result of Brexit

St Albans 2On the 21st July 2016 Baroness McIntosh of Pickering held a debate about “the impact on British farmers of the decision to leave the European Union.” Rt Revd Dr Alan Smith, Bishop of St Albans asked the Government to help to cultivate a culture of appreciation among the British public towards British farming. Lord Gardiner of Kimble responded for the Government and his comments can be found below.

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I too thank the noble Baroness, Lady McIntosh, for this debate. I share the delight of other Members of this House that in the recent reshuffle it was neither an exit nor a Brexit but a clear remain vote for the Minister, and not only that but a promotion, so we are delighted and thank him.

Whatever our opinions on Brexit, it is undeniable that British farming faces a period of uncertainty and insecurity. While it is true that the decision to leave the EU will bring some new opportunities for British agriculture in the long term, it is clear that there are substantial challenges ahead. Agriculture is more intimately connected to the European Union than any other UK sector, and the process of unpicking that relationship must be done with utmost care. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans says uncertainty and insecurity faces British farming as a result of Brexit”

Bishop of St Albans asks about delays in farm payments

On 20th July 2016 the Earl of Shrewsbury asked Her Majesty’s Government “what progress has been made to rectify delays in payments from the Single Farm Payment Scheme.” The Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, asked a follow up question:

St Albans 2The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, those of us in touch with the farming community are deeply aware of the 13,000 cases that are being reassessed at the moment, and we are grateful for what is being done to expedite that. The important question is: how will the system be reviewed and resourced so that this does not happen in future years? Can the Minister assure us that something is being done to guarantee that we have a better system? In particular, will he reconsider appointing a specific case worker for each application to try to see them through? Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about delays in farm payments”

Bishop of St Albans asks about affordable housing in rural and coastal areas

St Albans 2On 19th July 2016 Lord Shipley asked Her Majesty’s Government “what assessment they have made of their ability to achieve their target of one million new homes by 2020.” The Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, asked a follow up question:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, the 2015 spending review announced £60 million of grants to respond to the problem caused by second home ownership in areas with desirable coastal and rural housing. The aim was to provide affordable housing in perpetuity for local families who would otherwise be priced out of market. We were expecting an announcement on that but certain events intervened recently. Can the Minister assure us that this will go ahead and when it will come on stream? Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about affordable housing in rural and coastal areas”

Bishop of St Albans says tackling housing insecurity key to tackling poverty

On 14th July 2016 the House of Lords debated a motion from Lord Bird, “That this House takes note of the case for tackling the causes of poverty in the United Kingdom”. The Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, spoke about the need to tackle housing insecurity. He began by paying tribute to Baroness Sharp, who had made her valedictory speech.

The Bishop of Derby’s speech in the same debate can be seen here.

St Albans 2The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, it is a great privilege on behalf of all noble Lords to thank the noble Baroness, Lady Sharp of Guildford, for her nearly 18 years of service to this House, and not least for that pertinent and passionate valedictory speech, which went to the heart of many of the issues we are debating today. I am constantly amazed at the sheer talent and expertise that is on display in this Chamber, of which she has just demonstrated an outstanding example. Her scholarly contributions to this place, particularly her steadfast championing of adult and further education, have been greatly valued, especially during her time as a Front-Bench spokesperson. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans says tackling housing insecurity key to tackling poverty”