Members of the Church of England’s General Synod have started a petition backed by some top priests calling on Justin Welby to resign for failing to stop serial abuser John Smyth. Bishop of Newcastle Helen-Ann Hartley has just now called for Welby to go:
“I think rightly people are asking the question ‘Can we really trust the Church of England to keep us safe?’ And I think the answer at the moment is ‘no’.”
Westminster-watchers will be aware of Welby’s distinguished record making a fool of himself when it comes to politics. He:
Hartley, the most senior figure to speak out so far, says Welby’s resignation is required to prevent the CofE “losing complete credibility.” If you ask SW1 Welby achieved that years ago…
Bookmark this from Andy Burnham:
2029: “that’s when the next election will be.”
May 2027: “Absolutely not.”
“No election any time soon.”
“All of this speculation on an early election, I can knock that dead.”