Bishop of Portsmouth speaks about the Local Government Finance Settlement January 23, 2015 by Fulcrum On the 22nd January 2015 the Bishop of Portsmouth spoke during a debate on the Local Government Finance Settlement. Bishop Christopher spoke about the issues of local welfare provision and asked the Government to maintain or ring-fence the local welfare allocation to ensure that those in crisis need are helped. Church of England in Parliament. 23 January 2015 FulcrumShareTweetShare