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1666715

registered interest
date	23/10/2023
answering body	Church Commissioners
answering dept id	9
answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
hansard heading	Clergy: Marriage
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, whether there are recorded majorities in the (a) House and (b) College of Bishops to (i) allow clergy to enter into same-sex civil marriages and (ii) remove the stipulation that currently requires celibacy for clergy in same-sex relationships.
tabling member constituency	Exeter
tabling member printed	Mr Ben Bradshaw
uin	203744
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/10/2023 answer text <p>The proceedings of these meetings of the House of Bishops and College of Bishops, including details of votes, are confidential. Both the College and the House decided that further work should be done on allowing clergy to enter into same sex marriages, and on the stipulation that currently requires celibacy for clergy in same-sex relationships. It is stated in the General Synod papers (GS2328 and annexes: <a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2023-10/gs-2328-llf-nov-2023.pdf" target="_blank">gs-2328-llf-nov-2023.pdf (churchofengland.org)</a> ), that there is ‘further work on the Ministry elements of the Pastoral Guidance including on clergy in same-sex marriages’. It is hoped that this work will be done as quickly as is possible.</p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 26/10/2023 10:53:57 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
tabling member	230 label Biography information for Mr Ben Bradshaw

1666717

registered interest
date	23/10/2023
answering body	Church Commissioners
answering dept id	9
answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
hansard heading	Marriage: Homosexuality
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, whether a further letter threatening legal action was sent to the (a) House and (b) College of Bishops between the end of the meeting of the College and the House meeting in October.
tabling member constituency	Exeter
tabling member printed	Mr Ben Bradshaw
uin	203745
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/10/2023 answer text <p>Several items of correspondence were received over this period from a number of groups with different views, reflecting differing legal and theological opinions, as is widely in the public domain. Some offered a legal opinion on the routes of commendation or authorisation for the Prayers of Love and Faith, but I am not aware that any directly threatened the recipients with legal action.</p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 26/10/2023 11:01:21 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
tabling member	230 label Biography information for Mr Ben Bradshaw

1666751

registered interest
date	23/10/2023
answering body	Church Commissioners
answering dept id	9
answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
hansard heading	Religious Freedom: EU Countries and Middle East
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what the Church's position is on freedom of religion in conflict zones in (a) the Middle East and (b) Europe.
tabling member constituency	Bournemouth West
tabling member printed	Sir Conor Burns
uin	203801
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/10/2023 answer text <p>The National Church Institutions recognise that freedom of religion or belief, like other human rights, is strongly correlated with political stability, and that repression of freedom of religion or belief, whether by societal hostility or state discrimination, can serve as major drivers of conflict and violence.</p><p>Sadly, in too many parts of the world today, whether that be in Russia or Ukraine, or in Iraq and Israel, the discrimination against or targeting of religious minorities is commonly associated with rising social tensions, intercommunal strife, violence and even mass atrocities.</p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 26/10/2023 10:35:49 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
tabling member	3922 label Biography information for Sir Conor Burns

1666082

registered interest
date	19/10/2023
answering body	Church Commissioners
answering dept id	9
answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
hansard heading	Church of England: Gaza and Israel
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what support the Church of England has provided to (a) churches and (b) other people in (i) Israel and (ii) Gaza since 7 October 2023.
tabling member constituency	York Central
tabling member printed	Rachael Maskell
uin	203517
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/10/2023 answer text <p>Following the events of 7th October, the Archbishops of York and Canterbury called on Christians, and people of all faiths and none, to pray for the victims of the terrorist attacks by Hamas and for the innocent affected by the conflict.</p><p>The Archbishop of Canterbury visited Jerusalem, from 19<sup>th</sup> – 22<sup>nd</sup> October 2023, to stand in prayerful solidarity with the Anglican Diocese of Jerusalem following damage to the Al-Ahli Hospital and to show pastoral care and support to all those affected by the war. During the visit, the Archbishop met with those who had lost loved ones as a result of the 7 October attacks. Several dioceses are supporting humanitarian appeals to support the ongoing work of the Al–Ahli Hospital.</p><p>The Archbishop of Canterbury’s most recent comments on the issue of Israel and Gaza can be found here: <a href="https://www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/news/news-and-statements" target="_blank">https://www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/news/news-and-statements</a></p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 24/10/2023 12:16:47 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
tabling member	4471 label Biography information for Rachael Maskell

1663006

registered interest
date	13/10/2023
answering body	Church Commissioners
answering dept id	9
answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
hansard heading	Church of England: Finance
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, with reference to the Answer of 19 September 2023 to Question 198286 and to recommendation 5 in Appendix 1 of Sir Robert Chote's review, whether the dioceses’ annual returns on Lowest Income Communities Funding funding for 2022 will be published.
tabling member constituency	Exeter
tabling member printed	Mr Ben Bradshaw
uin	200860
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/10/2023 answer text <p>A summary analysis of dioceses’ returns on their use of the Lowest Income Communities Funding in 2022 will be published next year in the Strategic Mission and Ministry Investment Board’s 2023 annual report to the Archbishops’ Council, which will be made publicly available as a General Synod (Misc) paper and on the Church of England website.</p><p> </p><p>A summary analysis of dioceses’ returns on their use of the Lowest Income Communities Funding in 2021 was published in the Strategic Investment Board’s 2022 annual report to the Archbishops’ Council, which was published as a General Synod (Misc) paper and is available on the Church of England website at: <a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2023-08/final-version-2022-sib-annual-report-for-synod.pdf" target="_blank">final-version-2022-sib-annual-report-for-synod.pdf (churchofengland.org)</a> (page 14 refers to the relevant information).</p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 25/10/2023 14:23:43 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
tabling member	230 label Biography information for Mr Ben Bradshaw

1663443

registered interest
date	13/10/2023
answering body	Church Commissioners
answering dept id	9
answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
hansard heading	Church of England: Finance
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Commissioners are taking to ensure the Lowest Income Communities Funding meets the objective of assisting clergy and parishes in hardest to reach communities.
tabling member constituency	East Londonderry
tabling member printed	Mr Gregory Campbell
uin	201297
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/10/2023 answer text <p>The Independent Review of Lowest Income Communities Funding and Strategic Development Funding led by Sir Robert Chote was published in March 2022 and can be read here: <em><a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2022-03/irls-final-report-2.pdf%20" target="_blank">https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2022-03/irls-final-report-2.pdf </a></em></p><p>In respect of meeting the objective of assisting clergy and parishes in hardest to reach communities the Review recommended:</p><ul><li>Recommendation 2 - &quot;Refocusing annual returns … towards more strategic reporting&quot;.</li><li>Recommendation 3 - asked staff to &quot;identify and promote best practice … perhaps convening a learning symposium&quot;.</li><li>Recommendation 5 – asked staff to &quot;communicate more clearly the extent to which LInC funding is sustaining ministry&quot;.</li></ul><p>The action taken so far by the Archbishops' Council's Vision and Strategy team in response to those recommendations has been to:</p><ul><li>Raise the profile of LInC funding within ongoing strategic conversations between its staff and diocesan teams, as part of dioceses' strategic development processes, with the aim of improving its effectiveness.</li><li>Ask dioceses to give information about the intended outcomes from their planned use of LInC funding, together with how they will be measured, as part of their annual return on LInC funding for 2022.</li><li>Plan a learning event to bring together diocesan representatives to share and develop their approaches on the use of LInC funding, aiming to improve the effectiveness, accountability and transparency of LInC funding.</li></ul><p>From the start of 2023, the new Strategic Mission and Ministry Investment Board (SMMIB), a committee of the Archbishops' Council, has replaced the previous Strategic Investment Board and Strategic Ministry Board. It distributes and monitors funds made available by the Church Commissioners and Archbishops' Council via LInC, SDF, and other similar funds.</p><p>More information about the role the SMMIB plays can be found here: <a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/press-releases/new-board-oversee-unprecedented-church-england-investment-mission-and" target="_blank">https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/press-releases/new-board-oversee-unprecedented-church-england-investment-mission-and</a></p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 24/10/2023 12:18:10 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
tabling member	1409 label Biography information for Mr Gregory Campbell

1659195

registered interest
date	07/09/2023
answering body	Church Commissioners
answering dept id	9
answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
hansard heading	Church of England: Finance
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, with reference to Review of Lowest Income Communities and Strategic Development Funding, published in March 2022, what steps the Church Commissioners have taken to implement new governance arrangements to ensure that Lowest Incomes Communities Funding is distributed to dioceses by the Archbishops’ Council is accounted for (a) effectively and (b) transparently.
tabling member constituency	Exeter
tabling member printed	Mr Ben Bradshaw
uin	198286
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/09/2023 answer text <p>The Independent Review of Lowest Income Communities Funding and Strategic Development Funding led by Sir Robert Chote was published in March 2022 and can be read here: <a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2022-03/irls-final-report-2.pdf" target="_blank"><strong><em>https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2022-03/irls-final-report-2.pdf</em></strong></a></p><p>In respect of improving governance arrangements of Lowest Income Communities Funding (LInC) the Review recommended:</p><ul><li>Recommendation 2 - &quot;Refocusing annual returns … towards more strategic reporting&quot;.</li><li>Recommendation 3 - asked staff to &quot;identify and promote best practice … perhaps convening a learning symposium&quot;.</li><li>Recommendation 5 – asked staff to &quot;communicate more clearly the extent to which LInC funding is sustaining ministry&quot;.</li></ul><p>The action taken so far by the Archbishops' Council's Vision and Strategy team in response to those recommendations has been to:</p><ul><li>Raise the profile of LInC funding within ongoing strategic conversations between its staff and diocesan teams, as part of dioceses' strategic development processes, with the aim of improving its effectiveness.</li><li>Ask dioceses to give information about the intended outcomes from their planned use of LInC funding, together with how they will be measured, as part of their annual return on LInC funding for 2022.</li><li>Plan a learning event to bring together diocesan representatives to share and develop their approaches on the use of LInC funding, aiming to improve the effectiveness, accountability and transparency of LInC funding.</li></ul><p>The Independent Review also made further suggestions in Recommendation 1: &quot;encouraging dioceses to use LInC funding more for clergy transitions&quot; and in Recommendation 4: &quot;maintaining current levels of LInC funding&quot;. While not related directly to governance, these may also feature in the learning event and in ongoing conversations with dioceses.</p><p>From the start of 2023, the new Strategic Mission and Ministry Investment Board (SMMIB), a committee of the Archbishops' Council, has replaced the previous Strategic Investment Board and Strategic Ministry Board. It distributes and monitors funds made available by the Church Commissioners and Archbishops' Council via LInC, SDF, and other similar funds.</p><p>The Boards of the Archbishops’ Council and the Church Commissioners are regularly updated by the SMMIB about funding decisions and projects supported by these funds. Members of the Archbishops’ Council and Church Commissioners Boards are part of the SMMIB and help monitor funding decisions and spending. The SMMIB will also provide an annual report to the General Synod.</p><p>More information about the role the SMMIB plays can be found here: <a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/press-releases/new-board-oversee-unprecedented-church-england-investment-mission-and" target="_blank">https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/press-releases/new-board-oversee-unprecedented-church-england-investment-mission-and</a></p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 19/09/2023 16:02:06 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
tabling member	230 label Biography information for Mr Ben Bradshaw

1656004

registered interest
date	01/09/2023
answering body	Church Commissioners
answering dept id	9
answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
hansard heading	Church of England: Derelict Land
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England is taking to release brownfield sites within its Estate to the Church Housing Association to increase social housing.
tabling member constituency	Solihull
tabling member printed	Julian Knight
uin	196061
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/09/2023 answer text <p>Following the ‘Coming Home’ report published by the Archbishops’ Housing Commission, the Bishop of Chelmsford (as Lead Bishop for Housing) has been working with colleagues from across the Church, including the Church Commissioners, to implement the recommendations from that report. This work includes plans to establish a Church Housing Association. As and when that Housing Association is in place we hope there will be scope for the Commissioners and other church land owners to be able to work in partnership with it to enable the construction of much-needed affordable homes.</p><p>At the same time, the Church Commissioners are exploring the potential to boost the supply of affordable homes on their own land through the provision of Rural Exception Sites within existing communities.</p><p>More information about the Archbishops’ Housing Commission, and its Report ‘Coming Home’, can be read here: <a href="https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.churchofengland.org%2Fabout%2Farchbishops-commissions%2Fhousing-church-and-community%2Fabout-coming-home&amp;data=05%7C01%7Crichard.chapman%40churchofengland.org%7C743208e83b2c45ca7b3108dbb83284db%7C95e2463b3ab047b49ac1587c77ee84f0%7C0%7C0%7C638306301073096308%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=1SAhRzdUgiChN0%2FtN0O803jj8sJGQFLqqWsRZeWfCkw%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">About Coming Home | The Church of England</a>.</p><p>Information on the Church Commissioners’ approach to delivering land for housing can be found here <a href="https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.churchofengland.org%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2F2022-05%2Fupdated-strategic-land-statement_march-2022_0.pdf&amp;data=05%7C01%7Crichard.chapman%40churchofengland.org%7C743208e83b2c45ca7b3108dbb83284db%7C95e2463b3ab047b49ac1587c77ee84f0%7C0%7C0%7C638306301073096308%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=ydYb0NBNsRfVlYG1OBHg03sWDKhu8sCePS62qs0REX4%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">New development – defining what matters (churchofengland.org)</a></p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 19/09/2023 15:57:38 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
tabling member	4410 label Biography information for Julian Knight

1654855

registered interest
date	20/07/2023
answering body	Church Commissioners
answering dept id	9
answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
hansard heading	Church of England
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England takes to gather feedback from its congregation to inform future plans.
tabling member constituency	Solihull
tabling member printed	Julian Knight
uin	195512
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/09/2023 answer text <p>The Church of England comprises many independent charitable organisations that operate at a national, regional and local level.</p><p>Individual congregations are represented by the members of their local parochial church council (PCC), and issues can be raised at deanery, diocesan and national synod. Diocesan motions can be brought for debate to the Church of England’s (national) General Synod.</p><p>Consultations will often take place at a diocesan or national level when there are proposed changes in policy (for example the public consultation on the review of the Mission and Pastoral Measure), or for senior episcopal appointments. <br> <br> Where changes are proposed that require legislation in the General Synod on, for example, certain liturgies or relationships with other churches, the legislation providing for the change must be debated in every Diocesan Synod before a final vote is taken in the General Synod.</p><p>The National Church Institutions (NCIs) regularly monitor their projects and request feedback. A recent example is the 2022 report produced by Sir Robert Chote (<a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/press-releases/review-lowest-income-communities-and-strategic-development-funding" target="_blank">https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/press-releases/review-lowest-income-communities-and-strategic-development-funding</a> ) assessing the impact of the Lowest Income Communities Fund and Strategic Development Funding. Following the Chote Report the Church Commissioners and Archbishops’ Council formed the new Strategic Mission and Ministry Investment Board. More information about it can be found here: <a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/press-releases/new-board-oversee-unprecedented-church-england-investment-mission-and" target="_blank">https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/press-releases/new-board-oversee-unprecedented-church-england-investment-mission-and</a></p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 12/09/2023 20:04:30 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
tabling member	4410 label Biography information for Julian Knight

1654856

registered interest
date	20/07/2023
answering body	Church Commissioners
answering dept id	9
answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
hansard heading	Church of England
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church takes to (a) measure the effectiveness of its engagement initiatives and (b) make adjustments based on the feedback received.
tabling member constituency	Solihull
tabling member printed	Julian Knight
uin	195513
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/09/2023 answer text <p>The Church of England comprises many independent charitable organisations that operate at a national, regional and local level.</p><p>Individual congregations are represented by the members of their local parochial church council (PCC), and issues can be raised at deanery, diocesan and national synod. Diocesan motions can be brought for debate to the Church of England’s (national) General Synod.</p><p>Consultations will often take place at a diocesan or national level when there are proposed changes in policy (for example the public consultation on the review of the Mission and Pastoral Measure), or for senior episcopal appointments.</p><p>Where changes are proposed that require legislation in the General Synod on, for example, certain liturgies or relationships with other churches, the legislation providing for the change must be debated in every Diocesan Synod before a final vote is taken in the General Synod.</p><p>The National Church Institutions (NCIs) regularly monitor their projects and request feedback. A recent example is the 2022 report produced by Sir Robert Chote (<a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/press-releases/review-lowest-income-communities-and-strategic-development-funding" target="_blank">https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/press-releases/review-lowest-income-communities-and-strategic-development-funding</a> ) assessing the impact of the Lowest Income Communities Fund and Strategic Development Funding. Following the Chote Report the Church Commissioners and Archbishops’ Council formed the new Strategic Mission and Ministry Investment Board. More information about it can be found here: <a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/press-releases/new-board-oversee-unprecedented-church-england-investment-mission-and" target="_blank">https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/press-releases/new-board-oversee-unprecedented-church-england-investment-mission-and</a></p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 12/09/2023 20:07:24 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
tabling member	4410 label Biography information for Julian Knight