Government & Parliament
Archbishops of Canterbury have been members of the House of Lords by virtue of their office since parliament first began many centuries ago. In today's Lords there are two types of member - the Lords Temporal (usually known simply as Peers) and the Lords Spiritual (the two archbishops and 24 most senior bishops of the Church of England). The Archbishop of Canterbury is the most senior member of the Lords, being the first member entitled to take the oath of allegiance at the start of a new parliament after the Lord Speaker. Dr Rowan Williams took his seat in the Lords in March 2003, shortly after becoming Archbishop, and this section contains details of his parliamentary speeches and questions since that date. Further information on the Lords Spiritual and the Church of England in parliament can be seen here.
Recent items relating to Government & Parliament and House of Lords are shown below:
October 2009
Faith and Climate Change
29 October 2009
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, today hosted a meeting of faith leaders and faith-based…
Archbishop and Youth Parliament representative 'Value the Vote'
7 October 2009
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams met yesterday with Victoria Fowler, a member of the UK…
July 2009
Archbishop welcomes Chief Rabbi's peerage
13 July 2009
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, has today welcomed the announcement by the House of…
June 2009
Religious leaders call for end to 'legal euthanasia' - Daily Telegraph letter
29 June 2009
The joint faith leaders' letter which appeared in the Telegraph on 29th June 2009.
Post Secular Politics? Inter Faith Relations and Civic Practice
4 June 2009
The Lambeth Inter Faith Lecture was delivered by Luke Bretherton, Senior Lecturer in Theology & Politics…
May 2009
Joint Statement from the Archbishop of York and Archbishop of Canterbury
24 May 2009
Joint statement on the European Parliamentary and local elections
Ethics and expenses: Times article
23 May 2009
The following article by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, appeared in the Times on 29th…
April 2009
Archbishop contributes to IPPR G20 publication
1 April 2009
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams has contributed to '20 on the G20' - a pamphlet published…
March 2009
G20 leaders must not forget promises to the poor - Religious Leaders Communiqué
30 March 2009
Today religious leaders in Britain urged the G20 leaders not to forget their commitments to the world's…
Lambeth Palace hosts DFID White Paper consultation
18 March 2009
Lambeth Palace yesterday hosted a consultation between faith communities and the UK Government's Department…