Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby resigns over John Smyth abuse scandal

Top Anglican cleric stands down 'in sorrow' over handling of case involving serial child abuser

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby says his decision to step down 'makes clear how seriously the Church of England understands the need for change'. AP

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has announced he will resign after facing mounting pressure to quit over his handling of a child abuse case.

Mr Welby, the spiritual leader of 85 million Anglicans around the world, faced calls to resign after a report last week found he took insufficient action to stop a person it described as arguably the Church of England's most prolific serial abuser.

An independent review concluded that barrister John Smyth might have been brought to justice had the archbishop formally alerted authorities in 2013.

Mr Welby initially apologised, but stated that he would not resign, but has now reversed that decision. "Having sought the gracious permission of His Majesty the King [Charles III], I have decided to resign as Archbishop of Canterbury," he said in a statement.

"I hope this decision makes clear how seriously the Church of England understands the need for change and our profound commitment to creating a safer church. As I step down I do so in sorrow with all victims and survivors of abuse.

“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.”

Stephen Cottrell, Archbishop of York, said Mr Welby’s resignation was “the right and honourable thing to do”. Church commentators said they could not think of a historic precedent for an archbishop resigning over a scandal.

Over five decades between the 1970s until his death in 2018, Smyth is said to have subjected as many as 130 boys and young men in the UK and Africa to traumatic physical, sexual, psychological and spiritual attacks, permanently marking their lives.

A lay reader who led Christian summer camps, Smyth died aged 75 in South Africa while under investigation by Hampshire Police. he was “never brought to justice for the abuse”, the review said.

Mr Welby knew Smyth because of his attendance at Iwerne Christian camps in the 1970s, but the review said there was no evidence the archbishop “maintained any significant contact” with the barrister in later years.

Mr Welby added that he had “no idea or suspicion of this abuse” before 2013.

The report said Smyth “could and should have been formally reported to the police in the UK, and to authorities in South Africa [church authorities and potentially the police] by church officers, including a diocesan bishop and Justin Welby in 2013″.