Justin Welby to finish official duties by January 6, Lambeth Palace says

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby will finish his official duties in early January, as he steps down in the face of criticism over an abuse scandal within the Church of England.

Mr Welby announced last week – after days of mounting pressure over failures in his handling of the case of prolific abuser John Smyth – that he would be quitting his leading role in the Church.

Lambeth Palace has said he intends to complete official duties by January 6, and is likely to have “very little public-facing activity” between now and that date.

In a statement on Wednesday, Lambeth Palace said: “Following the announcement last week of his resignation as the Archbishop of Canterbury, Archbishop Justin intends to complete his official duties by the upcoming Feast of Epiphany (January 6).

“Archbishop Justin intends very little public-facing activity between now and Epiphany, but plans to honour a small number of remaining commitments.

“At Epiphany, the Archbishop of Canterbury’s official functions will be delegated to the Archbishop of York – more details will be provided on this in due course.

“The date on which Archbishop Justin formally ceases to hold office will be set in agreement with the Privy Council.”

Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell is the second-most senior bishop in the Church of England.

Earlier this week, Mr Cottrell acknowledged he is “the person that people will look to” over the coming months, as the Church seeks to replace Mr Welby, but appeared to rule himself out of the running.

At the age of 66, Mr Cottrell is nearing the Church of England retirement age of 70, and he told the Guardian newspaper: “We need someone who can give at least five years, probably more like 10. So I don’t consider myself to be a candidate.

“That doesn’t change my commitment over the coming years and I realise that for this next period I am the person that people will look to.”

At the time of announcing his resignation, Mr Welby said he was quitting “in sorrow with all victims and survivors of abuse” following days of pressure after the independent review concluded Smyth – the most prolific serial abuser to be associated with the Church – might have been brought to justice had Mr Welby formally reported him to police in 2013.

He had initially declined to resign when the report was published, saying he had “no idea or suspicion of this abuse” before 2013 but acknowledging the review had found that after its wider exposure that year he had “personally failed to ensure” it was “energetically investigated”.

Across five decades in three different countries and involving as many as 130 boys and young men in the UK and Africa, John Smyth is said to have subjected his victims to traumatic physical, sexual, psychological and spiritual attacks, permanently marking their lives.

He died aged 77 in Cape Town in 2018 while under investigation by Hampshire Police, and was “never brought to justice for the abuse”, the independent Makin Review said.

The Crown Nominations Commission (CNC) is responsible for appointing the next archbishop, examining candidates, holding interviews and eventually putting forward a name to the Prime Minister, who then passes it to the King.

It is expected the process, which begins with a period of consultation, will likely take some months.