Archbishops’ Council on way forward on women bishops; Actions against Facebook and Starbucks; Low pay traps millions
Women bishops – Statement on the Conclusion of the Meeting of the Archbishops’ Council
“The Archbishops’ Council of the Church of England met on November 27-28th to consider a wide ranging agenda. A substantial amount of time was given over to the discussion of the recent vote by General Synod on Women in the Episcopate.
“As part of their reflections, many council members commented on the deep degree of sadness and shock that they had felt as a result of the vote and also of the need to affirm all women serving the church – both lay and ordained – in their ministries.
“In its discussions the Council decided that a process to admit women to the episcopate needed to be restarted at the next meeting of the General Synod in July 2013. There was agreement that the Church of England had to resolve this matter through its own processes as a matter of urgency. The Council therefore recommended that the House of Bishops, during its meeting in a fortnight’s time, put in place a clear process for discussions in the New Year with a view to bringing legislative proposals before the Synod in July.”
The Archbishops Council is a body of 19 members which acts as the standing committee of the General Synod and has a number of other responsibilities as a trustee body.
The members of the council include the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, the chairs of the House of Clergy and the Chairs of the House of Laity. Full membership of the groups is available here: http://www.churchofengland.org/about-us/structure/archbishopscouncil/members.aspx
Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/nov/28/church-of-england-female-bishops
Facebook faces 24-hour boycott over tax dodging
This Saturday (1 December), large numbers of people will switch off Facebook for a day in protest at the company’s tax avoidance. Anti-poverty campaigners hope their message will go viral, and alert users of the popular site to the company’s dodging of corporation tax.
Church Action on Poverty initiated the campaign after it was revealed that the company paid just £196,000 in corporation tax on estimated UK sales of £175 million in 2011.
Low pay or no pay jobs market traps millions in poverty
The extent of in-work poverty in Britain has been graphically exposed in a new Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) report published this week, which highlights the insecurity faced by millions of working people.
The annual Monitoring Poverty report, written by the New Policy Institute (NPI), highlights the dynamic nature of poverty, caused in the main by people moving in and out of jobs, and an underemployed workforce.
Julia Unwin, Chief Executive of JRF, commented: “Tackling poverty requires a comprehensive strategy, but overcoming the frail jobs market must be the starting point.”
Starbucks face protests over tax avoidance and cuts
As public anger rises over news of tax avoidance by Starbucks, the coffee giant is to face a day of nonviolent action by people opposed to government cuts.
UK Uncut have announced that they will “turn” branches of Starbucks into refuges, crèches and homeless shelters on 8 December. They believe that taxes from Starbucks and other corporations could fund services such as these, which are suffering from government cuts.