§ 32. Mr. QuinnTo ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners if he will make a statement on employment relations within the Church of England. [149418]
§ Mr. Stuart BellThe great majority of clergy in the Church of England are office holders rather than employees. Clergy with the freehold enjoy greater job security than many employees. As to the Church of England's administrative staff, the national organisations of the Church together employ about 600 staff on lines broadly comparable with the Civil Service, with which they have a pay and employment conditions analogue. Others throughout the Church of England are employed by Diocesan Boards of Finance, Boards of Education, parishes and so on.