CHURCH OF ENGLAND bishops should continue to sit in the House of Lords — but other Christian leaders, along with the leaders of other faiths, should also have places in Parliament, according to a northern diocesan. The call comes from the Bishop of Ripon and Leeds, the Rt Rev John Packer, who, at Ripon since 2000, became a “Lord Spiritual” — one of the 26 Anglican bishops with seats in the Lords — a year ago.
In an article headed “Life as a Lord” in the February issue of Together, his diocesan monthly, Bishop Packer says: “I believe it is appropriate to have a faith representation in the House.”
But he adds: “However, I would rather it was broader in Christian terms, with more denominations represented — and, indeed, with representatives of other faiths.”
Bishop Packer does not regard being in the Lords as “my main job”, he says candidly.
And with his diocese being 200 miles away from London, travelling to Westminster has its difficulties, he signals.
He says: “It can be time-consuming, and I always try to meet people while I’m in London and use the journeys for reading or writing.”
But he adds: “But if we’ve got the system we have, then we have to use it to make the Christian voice heard.”
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