Conservatives urge Mullally to dam Project Spire
THE Archbishop of Canterbury-elect, the Rt Revd Sarah Mullally, has been urged by 27 Conservative MPs and peers to halt Project Spire, the Church Commissioners’ plan to ascertain a £100-million Fund for Healing, Repair and Justice to the advantage of communities affected by the historic transatlantic slave trade. The letter, seen by The Sunday Times, urges Bishop Mullally to give attention to “strengthening parishes” slightly than on pursuing what they describe as “high-profile and legally dubious vanity projects”. The intervention has been led by Katie Lam, a shadow Home Office minister who has raised questions on Project Spire with the Second Church Estates Commissioner. The letter warns that the plan would set a “worrying precedent” for other institutions in the usage of charitable funds. The Commissioners said that governance arrangements were being “developed transparently — according to charity law, our fiduciary duties, and our moral purpose — to make sure proper oversight and accountability”.
Fletcher ‘not fit to enter a plea’
THE Revd Jonathan Fletcher, 83, a former minister of Emmanuel Church, Wimbledon, who was charged with eight counts of indecent assault on a person aged 16 or over and one further count of Section 18 grievous bodily harm with intent, won’t stand trial, after a judge ruled that he was not fit to enter a plea (News, 11 July 2024). The trial was scheduled for May, but The Daily Telegraph reported last month that, on 2 December, Judge Lodder KC had determined that there would as a substitute be an “examination of the facts”, and that Mr Fletcher would play no part within the proceedings. If, after weighing the evidence, the court finds that he committed the offences with which he’s charged, he won’t be sentenced as normal, but will probably be subject on the judge’s discretion to a variety of treatment orders or to an entire discharge.
Mother and daughter join cathedral choirs
A MOTHER and daughter have been appointed alto lay vicars at two UK cathedrals. Eilidh Owen has been singing at Salisbury Cathedral since September, and her mother, Ailsa Cochrane, has joined the choir of Lichfield Cathedral. They are the primary female alto lay vicars on the two cathedrals. Ms Owen was previously a chorister and choral scholar at Lichfield. Ms Cochrane has been a vocal tutor to the boy choristers at Lichfield since 2007.
Tributes paid to the Revd Dr Richard Sudworth
THE Archbishop of York has paid tribute to the Archbishops’ Council’s Director of Faith and Public Life, the Revd Dr Richard Sudworth, who died on 15 December. He had been living with cancer. Dr Sudworth took up his post in early 2025, after seven years because the Archbishop of Canterbury’s lead on interfaith relations. He was, Archbishop Cottrell said, a “sensible, generous colleague and a faithful servant of the gospel”. Dr Sudworth had been a parish priest in Sparkbrook, Birmingham, where he was involved in community outreach and interfaith dialogue. He was also a lecturer in Anglican theology on the Queen’s Foundation, Birmingham, and was published widely on Christian-Muslim relations. In 2023, he was appointed OBE for services to interfaith cohesion. Gazette, page 18
