Justin Welby says he will step down as archbishop of Canterbury

Source: The Guardian

Tue 12 Nov 2024 09.24 EST


The archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has announced that he will step down after facing mounting pressure to quit over his handling of an abuse scandal.

Pressure on Welby has been intensifying since the publication last week of a damning report on the church’s cover-up of John Smyth’s abuse in the UK in the late 1970s and early 80s, and later in Zimbabwe and South Africa. About 130 boys are believed to have been victims.

The independent Makin review into the abuse concluded that he might have been brought to justice had the archbishop formally reported it to police a decade ago. In a statement posted on social media, Welby said: “Having sought the gracious permission of His Majesty The King, I have decided to resign as Archbishop of Canterbury.

“The Makin Review has exposed the long-maintained conspiracy of silence about the heinous abuses of John Smyth. When I was informed in 2013 and told that police had been notified, I believed wrongly that an appropriate resolution would follow. “It is very clear that I must take personal and institutional responsibility for the long and retraumatising period between 2013 and 2024.”

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/nov/12/justin-welby-step-down-archbishop-canterbury