SURVIVORS and senior clergy called for more heads to roll today as a damning report into a prolific child abuser continued to engulf the Church of England.
Justin Welby quit as Archbishop of Canterbury after the report found he “could and should” have reported John Smyth's abuse of boys and young men to police in 2013.
His automatic peerage is in doubt as bishops called for resignations for those behind the cover-up.
Amid public outcry over the scandal, politicians and campaigners also called for an end to the 26 automatic peerages for Church of England archbishops and bishops known as Lords Spiritual.
The Bishop of Gloucester, Rachel Treweek, said that Mr Welby's resignation was right, but it would be wrong to say that it is a “job done.”
She said everyone who was “part of that cover-up... must be brought to account.”
The Bishop of Dudley, Martin Gorick, said he felt “uncomfortable” working alongside anyone who was “covering up” reports from Smyth's victims.
The Church's deputy lead bishop for safeguarding Julie Conalty said she could not guarantee there was no abuse still going on in the Church, adding no institution “can ever be totally safe” and that “very possibly other people should go.”
Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell, the second most powerful figure in the Church after Mr Welby, however said they should not be bishops, arguing the resignation of Mr Welby for “institutional failures” was enough.
Bishop of Newcastle Dr Helen-Ann Hartley meanwhile said progress in changing the safeguarding culture of the Church was “being undermined by the arrogance of a few.”
Today a sexual abuse victim known as Gilo, whom Mr Welby in 2017 personally apologised to for his office’s failure to respond to 17 letters seeking help and redress, told the Morning Star: “I'm not sure that the bishops are fit to be in the House of Lords, full stop.
“I don't think they really have a right to be there in a legislative capacity.
“I think Welby has got some restorative justice work to do before (being a peer).”
While recognising the expertise some bishops bring to the upper chamber, he added: “I do have have problems with the culture of power and privilege that goes with that, especially if they are unaccountable.
“I think it's the unaccountability coupled with privilege that becomes problematic.
“The bishops in the Church of England have been astonishingly untouchable up until now."
Speaking on behalf of the victims’ group House of Survivors, he added that Mr Welby cannot be allowed to become a “scapegoat” for the cover-up of abuse.
He said: “If he is the church’s sacrificial lamb that’s not healthy for anyone, for survivors, the church or indeed for Welby himself — other resignations must now follow — those criticised in the Makin Report must now consider their position.
“The Church of England must now 100 per cent fully get behind mandatory reporting for known and suspected child sexual abusers.”
Baroness Grey-Thompson has called for the measure in a private members’ bill currently going in the Lords.
Survivors of Church abuse have also called for other senior members of the Church to face questions over the handling of the Smyth allegations.
Former vicar Mark Stibbe told Channel 4 News: “I applaud Justin Welby for resigning but what I think the survivor group would like is more resignations because that means more accountability, people taking responsibility for having been silent when they should have spoken.”
Another survivor Richard Gittins said bishops “who kept the stories to themselves” should now be the focus of questioning.
National Secular Society chief executive Stephen Evans said: “Justin Welby's resignation and the role of the Church in the John Smyth scandal is a reminder of why its privileges need to be rescinded.
“The Church's efforts to conceal the actions of one of its most notorious abusers reveal a profound failure to uphold basic ethical standards and gives lie to any claim that the Church offers any worthwhile moral insight to the legislative process.
“The UK government should not remain bound to an ailing institution that has repeatedly facilitated abuse and neglected its victims. Disestablishment is right both as a basic matter of principle and would better reflect the reality of modern Britain.”
Independent MP for Birmingham Perry Barr Ayoub Khan said: “The Lords is an antiquated institution out of touch with reality.
“While the government have rightly legislated to remove hereditary peers, the ‘Lords Spiritual’ must be next.
“Bishops have taken part in less than 10 per cent of votes in the Lords over the last two decades, and have among the poorest attendance records overall.”
Former minister of state for Scotland and Labour peer George Foulkes said, separately from the scandal, that he was against Church of England bishops being represented in the Lords “because they represent just one church in one part of the UK.”
