Former Anglican Bishop Dr Gavin Ashenden said 'As a matter of honour, he must resign,' as he reacts to the revelation that Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby considered resigning after a report found the Church of England covered up sexual abuse.
Justin Welby is coming under increasing pressure to resign after a report savaged him for ignoring sex abuse by the Church of England's most prolific abuser.
Mr Welby was today accused by one high-profile vicar of having 'lost the confidence of the clergy', while a bishop called on him to quit to avoid the Church 'losing complete credibility' on safeguarding. She said while his resignation is 'not going to solve the problem', it would be 'a very clear indication that a line has been drawn, and that we must move towards independence of safeguarding'.
The Makin review into Smyth's abuse, published last week, concluded that he might have been brought to justice had the Archbishop of Canterbury formally reported it to police a decade ago. Mr Welby knew Smyth because of his attendance at Iwerne Christian camps in the 1970s, but the review said there was no evidence that he had 'maintained any significant contact' with the barrister in later years.
It said 'had that been done, on the balance of probabilities' Smyth could have been brought to justice 'at a much earlier point' than the Hampshire Police investigation in early 2017. 'With sadness we do not think there is any alternative to his immediate resignation if the process of change and healing is to start now.'Giles Fraser, vicar of St Anne's in Kew, west London, said Mr Welby had 'lost the confidence of the clergy'
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