George Carey: Ex-archbishop allowed to be minister again

Former Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey had his permission to officiate reinstated

Former Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey has had his ban on being a minister overturned.

The 85-year-old had his permission to officiate (PTO) withdrawn when information emerged linking him to the late John Smyth QC, who allegedly abused boys at Christian camps.

Lord Carey was not accused of carrying out any abuse himself, and said he was "bewildered" by the ban.

He said the Bishop of Oxford has now reinstated his PTO after seven months.

Mr Smyth was accused of attacking boys who he met at a Dorset Christian camp in the 1970s and 1980s.

Police had been planning to question the barrister when he died in South Africa in 2018 at the age of 77.

A planned independent review into the Church of England's handling of allegations against Mr Smyth is expected to report in full during 2021.

Explaining why his PTO was withdrawn on 17 June last year, Lord Carey said the review raised concerns that were referred to the National Safeguarding Team (NST) of the Church of England.

The NST concluded Lord Carey, while principal of Trinity College Bristol in the 1980s, had seen a report concerning Mr Smyth's "evil conduct" and did not disclose these concerns to the authorities, he said.

He continued: "They also concluded that as a result of this investigation and further training that I have recently undertaken, they believe I do not pose a safeguarding risk.

"However, I respectfully disagree with their judgement. I have no memory at all of John Smyth at Trinity College Bristol."

Ball was jailed for sex offences against teenagers and young men dating back to the 1970s

The former leader of the Church of England previously resigned as an honorary assistant bishop in the Diocese of Oxford in 2017, after a damning independent report found he had "colluded [with the convicted abuser Peter Ball] rather than seeking to help those harmed".

Ball, formerly the Bishop of Lewes, was jailed in 2015 for sexually abusing 18 young men over three decades.

Lord Carey was later granted a PTO by the Diocese of Oxford in 2018, allowing him to preach at the church where he worships, conditional on no further concerns coming to light.

The former archbishop, who said he had "no memory at all" of Mr Smyth, added: "I am fully committed to placing those who have survived abuse at the centre of our safe practices, thoughts and prayers, and to acknowledge how dreadful such abuse is and how lifelong the impact of such abuse."