UK Prime Minister Burnham pledges to repeal law barring Catholics from bishop appointments
Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced plans to scrap the 1829 law that prevents Catholics from taking part in appointing Church of England bishops.
In a written statement to Parliament, Prime Minister Andy Burnham declared his intention to repeal the Roman Catholic Relief Act of 1829, which deems it a high misdemeanour for a Catholic to advise the sovereign on Church of England bishop appointments. As the first openly Catholic to hold Downing Street, Burnham has been using a workaround by assigning the responsibility to Lord Chancellor Alex Norris. He said the existing prohibition is "unacceptable" and promised to introduce a bill at the earliest opportunity.
The prime minister's role in the process is largely ceremonial, with candidates vetted by a church committee and the monarch represented by the ecclesiastical secretary and the Lord Chancellor. National Secular Society chief Stephen Evans welcomed the proposal but urged a full separation of church and state. The reform aims to align the UK's constitutional framework with contemporary notions of religious equality.
