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1125718

	registered interest
	date	09/05/2019
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Christianity: Africa
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England is taking to tackle the persecution of Christians in African countries; and what steps the Church of England is taking with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to highlight the persecution of Christians in those countries.
	tabling member constituency	Strangford
	tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
	uin	252642
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2019 answer text <p>The Church of England mission agencies are supporting partner churches and communities in Africa to help them address the challenges of inter-religious living. The submission by the Church of England and the Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales to the Foreign Secretary’s independent review into persecuted Christians sets out recommendations as to the steps that the Foreign and Commonwealth Office can take to support Christian communities and other religious whose right to freedom of religion or belief is being impinged.</p><p>The submission from the Church of England can be read here: <a href="https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.archbishopofcanterbury.org%2Fnews%2Flatest-news%2Fanglicans-and-catholics-make-joint-submission-foreign-office-review-persecuted&amp;data=02%7C01%7Csimon.stanley%40churchofengland.org%7Cc99ba4c953fc4ca29a1708d6d7b3ab1b%7C95e2463b3ab047b49ac1587c77ee84f0%7C0%7C0%7C636933563999961576&amp;sdata=lkYPUg7yohrUb1SDkrGiN6VIxDlSumjLs1CdRxzmz2I%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">https://www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/news/latest-news/anglicans-and-catholics-make-joint-submission-foreign-office-review-persecuted</a></p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Dame Caroline Spelman question first answered 13/05/2019 15:04:45 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1125722

	registered interest
	date	09/05/2019
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Overseas Aid: Sri Lanka
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what discussions the Church of England has had with the Department for International Development on ensuring aid reaches people in Sri Lanka who need it most.
	tabling member constituency	Strangford
	tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
	uin	252646
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2019 answer text <p>The Church of England has had no discussions with the Department for International Development on aid to Sri Lanka, but the Diocese of Leeds which has had a companion link with Sri Lanka for nearly 40 years, is in regular contact with the Anglican church of Sri Lanka, as to how best the Church can contribute to human flourishing in Sri Lanka.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Dame Caroline Spelman question first answered 13/05/2019 15:05:33 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1135780

	registered interest
	date	01/07/2019
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Tourism
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England has taken to promote tourism to its churches and cathedrals.
	tabling member constituency	Strangford
	tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
	uin	271461
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/07/2019 answer text <p>The Church of England welcomes the Government’s new Tourism Sector Deal, which encompasses all our churches and cathedrals and will give a significant boost to our cultural heritage. Cathedrals in England attract over 10 million visitors a year, the majority as tourists.</p><p>The Church supports the work of the Churches Visitor and Tourism Association on several initiatives that help the public learn more about their local churches:</p><ul><li>The<a href="https://www.explorechurches.org/" target="_blank"> Explore Churches</a> website run by the National Churches Trust provides a single online gateway for anyone wanting to visit churches, whether as a tourist or a pilgrim.</li><li>The <a href="https://facultyonline.churchofengland.org/churches" target="_blank">Church Heritage Record</a> provides geo-located data on every Church of England church, including information on the history of the building where it is available. Local congregations are encouraged to add details of their church to this and to <a href="https://www.achurchnearyou.com/" target="_blank">A Church Near You</a>, to help people planning visits.</li></ul><p>The Church of England also supports the Cathedrals Marketing and Communications Network to share best practice and coordinate national campaigns. Individual cathedrals encourage visitors through hosting special exhibitions, such as Luke Jerram’s <em>Gaia</em>, currently at Liverpool Cathedral, and Tim Peake’s space capsule, which was visited by over 170,000 people when on display at Peterborough Cathedral as part of a national tour.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Dame Caroline Spelman question first answered 03/07/2019 15:43:20 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1135781

	registered interest
	date	01/07/2019
	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: Community Development
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England is taking to encourage parishioners to support the local economy.
	tabling member constituency	Strangford
	tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
	uin	271462
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/07/2019 answer text <p>A recent study of the economic impact of cathedrals in England in 2014 showed that they generated around £220 million annually for the national economy. The report also showed that over 7,300 jobs depend on cathedrals, either through direct employment or the local economy.</p><p> </p><p>Tourists and visitors to English cathedrals generate an additional £125m for the local economy through visitor-related spend, which takes place directly in the towns and cities where cathedrals are based.</p><p> </p><p>No formal assessment has been made of the direct or indirect contribution of churches to the local economy.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Dame Caroline Spelman question first answered 03/07/2019 15:45:25 answering member 312 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Spelman
	tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1168767

	registered interest
	date	20/12/2019
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Christianity: Oppression
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the hon. Member representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England is taking to provide support to (a) Kurdish Christians and (b) other persecuted Christian groups.
	tabling member constituency	Strangford
	tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
	uin	299
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/01/2020 answer text <p>(a) The Church of England is working closely to support Christan development and aid agencies to meet the humanitarian need of those who are displaced from the conflict in Syria.</p><p>The Church is continuing to encourage the Department for International Development and the wider international community to bolster the capacity of local civil society groups operating in the region. These groups, many of them faith-based, will be on the frontline of the humanitarian response in the months and years to come.</p><p>(b) The Church of England welcomes the decision by the Government to accept and implement the recommendations of the Truro Report to strengthen Foreign and Commonwealth Office support for persecuted Christians. Church of England officials are providing advice and support to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office as it takes forward the implementation of these recommendations. The Church welcomes the Prime Minister’s commitment made in his Christmas message to stand in solidarity with Christians everywhere and to defend their right to practice their faith.</p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 10/01/2020 16:16:53 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
	tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1176001

	registered interest
	date	04/02/2020
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Youth Centres
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the right hon. Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what estimate the Church of England has made of the number of church-based youth clubs; and what assessment he has made of effect of those clubs on the wellbeing of the young people that use them.
	tabling member constituency	Strangford
	tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
	uin	12268
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/02/2020 answer text <p>The Church of England employs 2,670 children and youth workers in its parishes, and there are 80,000 volunteers across the church who are engaged in projects supporting children and young people. Projects can range from holiday clubs, messy church, sports ministry and creative play.</p><p>The Church of England commissioned a research project assessing how best to approach building confidence, engagement and belonging, creating a supportive and inclusive environment in 2016 which has formed the basis of its approach. The report can be read here: <a href="https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.churchofengland.org%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2F2017-11%2FRooted%2520in%2520the%2520Church%2520Summary%2520Report.pdf&amp;data=02%7C01%7Csimon.stanley%40churchofengland.org%7Caedf6ae675af4733dd0708d7ab1b6383%7C95e2463b3ab047b49ac1587c77ee84f0%7C0%7C1%7C637166006451445255&amp;sdata=XgFI5KrYgz5a79R4T0td9p%2FTpLQ5gHlAVC1i0RrVA%2FQ%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2017-11/Rooted%20in%20the%20Church%20Summary%20Report.pdf</a></p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 06/02/2020 15:58:55 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
	tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1177281

	registered interest
	date	10/02/2020
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Christianity: Religious Freedom
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the hon. Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what recent discussions the Church of England has had with (a) officials in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and (b) the Prime Minister’s Special Representative for Freedom of Religion and Belief on the volume of attacks on the Christian communities throughout the world.
	tabling member constituency	Strangford
	tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
	uin	14664
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/02/2020 answer text <p>The Mission and Public Affairs Division of the Archbishop’s Council is in regular contact with the Freedom of Religion or Belief Team at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and has engaged on this issue with relevant embassy staff when travelling overseas. They have also had a series of meetings with the Prime Minister’s Special Representative for Freedom of Religion or Belief since his appointment. Senior Church leaders have also had meetings with the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy in recent weeks.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 12/02/2020 17:54:11 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
	tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1177282

	registered interest
	date	10/02/2020
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches: Finance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the hon. Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what assessment the Church Commissioners have made of the effect of the Strategic Development Fund on local (a) churches and (b) communities.
	tabling member constituency	Strangford
	tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
	uin	14665
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/02/2020 answer text <p>All projects supported by the Strategic Development Funding are subject to monitoring and evaluation. The majority of projects are ongoing and it is too early to assess the full impact of the overall programme, but generally projects have already reported nearly 9,000 new disciples, increased activity on discipleship, and a wide range of projects engaging with local communities. Examples of projects that the Strategic Development Fund is enabling include food banks, help for new mothers, outreach to homeless people, engagement with those in prison, and hospitality and other forms of support for those living in deprived communities.</p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 12/02/2020 17:53:35 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
	tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1177283

	registered interest
	date	10/02/2020
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Churches
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the hon. Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England is taking to monitor the effect of renewal and reform programme church planting on planting on local (a) churches and (b) communities.
	tabling member constituency	Strangford
	tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
	uin	14666
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/02/2020 answer text <p>Church planting is an excellent way for local churches to develop their mission and ministry, especially into communities where the church presence may be limited. Over 2,000 fresh expressions of church have been created since the Mission-Shaped Church report in 2004. These churches have proved effective at reaching people who do not normally engage with church, and at reaching young people especially.</p><p> </p><p>Since 2016 the Renewal and Reform programme and Strategic Development Funding have supported dioceses to develop church planting capacity in major population areas. These churches have shown significant growth and are also reaching de-churched, non-churched and young people.</p><p> </p><p>We specifically monitor and evaluate all projects funded by Strategic Development Funding, including their impact numerically, spiritually and in term of community impact. The Church of England also collects statistics annually from every church, including church plants and fresh expressions of church, as well as commissioning additional research on the wider impact of church planting.</p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 12/02/2020 17:53:10 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
	tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1177284

	registered interest
	date	10/02/2020
	answering body	Church Commissioners
	answering dept id	9
	answering dept short name	Church Commissioners
	answering dept sort name	Church Commissioners
	hansard heading	Church Commissioners: Investment
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the hon. Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church Commissioners are taking to help ensure that companies they invest in and comply with the Paris climate agreement.
	tabling member constituency	Strangford
	tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
	uin	14667
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/02/2020 answer text <p>The Church Commissioners have continued to pursue action on climate change as their overwhelming ethical investment priority.</p><p> </p><p>The Commissioners have helped grow the number of companies involved in the Transition Pathway Initiative (TPI), which is now backed by investors representing over $18 trillion of assets under management and advice. TPI scores companies according to the quality of their management of climate change issues and indicates whether their carbon emissions are aligned with the pathways required to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, the Commissioners have signed up to the Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance, requiring them to transition their portfolio to net zero emissions by 2050. The Alliance emphasises a change in the real economy and focuses on continued engagement with policymakers, companies and asset managers alongside low carbon investments, to create the conditions required to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement.</p><p> </p><p>The Commissioners are part of Climate Action 100+ and through their own programmes encourage as many high-emitting companies as possible to meet their climate expectations. Whilst the Church can divest from companies not taking climate change seriously, they are expecting to implement their next round of climate-related restrictions by the end of 2020. In 2023 a further systematic round of restrictions is expected if companies still do not change after engagement efforts, with tougher thresholds focusing on alignment of the fossil fuel sector and electric utilities with the goals of the Paris Agreement. Following sustained engagement from the Church and other investors BP have recently announced their ambition to become a net-zero emissions company by 2050.</p><p> </p><p>The Church of England Pensions Board have also recently launched a Paris-aligned passive investment index with FTSE Russell and announced a commitment of £600m to the new Index.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 12/02/2020 17:52:24 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
	tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon