It’s been reported that The King spoke to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, through intermediaries rather than directly as the leading cleric prepared to resign.
The Archbishop announced he would step aside on Tuesday morning following his mishandling of a child abuse scandal in the Church of England.
Although The King has formally accepted Welby’s resignation as Archbishop, he reportedly did not speak with him directly.
it is reported King Charles exchanged words privately with Welby ahead of his resignation but through intermediaries rather than face to face or on the phone.
As the Supreme Governor of the Church of England, the Monarch’s permission is required for the Archbishop of Canterbury to resign. This is reflected in the beginning of Justin Welby’s statement: ”Having sought the gracious permission of His Majesty The King, I have decided to resign as Archbishop of Canterbury.”
Late last week, the Makin review findings were made public. The report was an independent review into the actions of John Smyth, a member of the Church of England who sexually, psychologically and physically abused more than 130 children in both the United Kingdom and Africa at camps and gatherings.
Justin Welby learned about the abuse in 2013 and failed to report what he knew to the police. In his statement, he said ”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.
One of the Church of England’s most senior bishops, Bishop of Newcastle, Dr Helen-Ann Hartley, had called for the resignation of Justin Welby in the days before he stepped aside. A public petition calling for him to quit also gathered over 10,000 signatures by the time he tendered his resignation.
No time frame for his replacement has been announced yet. King Charles will be presented with the name of a preferred candidate after deliberations by the Crown Appointments Committee. They recommend one person to the Prime Minister who then asks The King to approve that choice. King Charles, as Supreme Governor of the Church of England, has the right to refuse but is unlikely to do so.
