A RELIGIOUS leader has apologised after saying that there was a "significant cloud" over of a bishop accused of child abuse.

The Archbishop of Canterbury said he had been "wrong" when he previously refused to retract his remarks about George Bell.

Justin Welby's original comments came after claims the former bishop of Chichester abused a girl between the ages of five and eight.

These claims led to a £15,000 compensation payout, before an independent review said the Church of England was too quick to accept the allegations.

The Argus: The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby

Mr Welby said: “Previously I refused to retract that statement and I was wrong to do so. I took that view because of the importance we rightly place on listening to those who come forward with allegations of abuse, and the duty of care we owe to them.

“But we also owe a duty of care to those who are accused. I apologise for the hurt that my refusal to retract that statement has caused to Bishop Bell’s surviving relatives, colleagues and longstanding supporters.”

The controversy around Mr Bell began when claims emerged that he had abused a girl in the 1950s.

The Church of England went on to apologise following the allegations against the former bishop, who died in 1958.

The Argus: Bishop George Bell, the former bishop of Chichester who died in 1958 Bishop George Bell, the former bishop of Chichester who died in 1958

An independent report into the handling of the allegations was published in December 2017.

The report, led by Lord Carlile of Berriew, criticised the church for accepting the allegations “without serious investigation or inquiry”.

After the report was published, the Archbishop of Canterbury issued a statement which said: “The complaint about Bishop Bell does not diminish the importance of his great achievement.

“We realise that a significant cloud is left over his name.”

A second review was launched after the Church of England handed “fresh information” to Sussex Police about Mr Bell in January 2018, understood to relate to a different person.


It was carried out by senior ecclesiastical lawyer Timothy Briden, the vicar general of Canterbury.

The church’s national safeguarding team published its findings of the second inquiry in January 2019 and said the new allegations were “unfounded”.

In a new statement issued on Wednesday, Mr Welby said: “Posthumous allegations made against Bishop George Bell were taken seriously and investigated fully.

“I do not apologise for that, but as I have said before, we did not manage our response to the original allegation with the consistency, clarity or accountability that meets the high standards rightly demanded of us.

“I recognised the hurt that has been done as a consequence, and I have apologised unreservedly for the mistakes made in this process.

“What I say today that is new and should have been said sooner is this: I do not consider there to be a ‘significant cloud’ over Bishop George Bell’s name.”