Justin Welby jokes while dismissing safeguarding failures in farewell speech

In the United Kingdom, Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, faced significant backlash following his final speech in the House of Lords before stepping down due to controversies surrounding Church safeguarding failures. During his address, he made light of a medieval beheading, eliciting laughter from some members, which many interpreted as an insensitive response to the serious allegations against his church related to abuse. The speech occurred during a time when the Church was grappling with the fallout from the Makin Review, which scrutinized its handling of allegations concerning John Smyth, a serial abuser associated with the Church. Welby's comments, including references to historical events like the decapitation of Simon of Sudbury in 1381, led several colleagues and victims to criticize him for trivializing the suffering of abuse survivors. The backlash was swift, and Welby issued a public apology the following day, acknowledging that his words had caused distress. He emphasized his intent was not to downplay the trauma experienced by victims of abuse but recognized that his remarks had a profound impact on those hurt by Smyth's actions and the Church's past failures. As he will be leaving his position on January 6, Welby mentioned he would not participate in Christmas services, further indicating the significance of the comments he made during his farewell and the serious context in which he was resigning. He accepted personal and institutional responsibility for the Church's mishandling of safeguarding cases, which had lasting effects on victims and survivors within the community. The overall tone of his farewell was viewed as frivolous by many, including Bishop of Newcastle Helen-Ann Hartley, who expressed her dismay and stated that such language was disrespectful to victims of abuse, highlighting a crucial tension between institutional accountability and individual leadership within the Church of England.