Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has said he considered resigning over the John Smyth scandal.
Mr Welby apologised after the Makin Review concluded that the barrister, thought to have been the most prolific abuser associated with the Church of England, might have been brought to justice had the archbishop formally alerted authorities in 2013.
Speaking to Channel 4, Mr Welby told Cathy Newman he had taken advice from senior colleagues as recently as the morning of their interview.
“No, I’m not going to resign for this. If I’d known before 2013 or had grounds for suspicion, that would be a resigning matter then and now. But I didn’t,” he added.
Mr Welby’s spokeperson said he “reiterates his horror at the scale of John Smyth’s egregious abuse, as reflected in his public apology”, repeated that he does not intend to resign, and said he “hopes the Makin Review supports the ongoing work of building a safer church here and around the world”.
