Former Archbishop Carey facing inquiry
Police and CPS discuss whether to bring charges in wake of sex case
Police and prosecutors are considering a criminal investigation into former Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey over an alleged cover-up regards sex abuser Bishop Peter Ball, The Daily Telegraph can reveal. His family declined to comment. It comes as the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse today begins a three-week examination of the Church.
POLICE and prosecutors are considering a criminal investigation into a former Archbishop of Canterbury over an alleged cover-up of sexual abuse.
Lord Carey stepped down as an honorary bishop last year after a report found the Church had “colluded” with the former Bishop of Gloucester and Lewes, Peter Ball, a convicted sex abuser, under his leadership.
Now the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is discussing with Scotland Yard detectives whether to pursue criminal charges against Lord Carey, The Daily Telegraph understands.
Last night, the Met said it had not launched an official criminal investigation into Lord Carey. A spokesman for the Carey family declined to comment.
It comes as the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) will today begin a three-week examination of the Anglican Church.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and Rowan Williams, the former Archbishop, are both expected to give evidence.
Last summer a report by Dame Moira Gibb concluded the Church “colluded” with Ball, who was jailed three years ago for historic sex offences against young men.
It was highly critical of Lord Carey, who in 1992 did not pass on to police six letters alleging wrongdoing by Ball during a police investigation. After Ball was cautioned in 1993, Lord Carey did not add Ball’s name to a list of those whose suitability for ministry was questionable, and he helped reinstate him in the Church, the report found.
CPS lawyers and Met detectives are examining the Gibb Report to determine whether Lord Carey, 82, should face criminal charges. The officers are attached to Operation Hydrant, the Met team coordinating responses to allegations arising from IICSA. A Hydrant spokesman said it arranged a meeting between Scotland Yard and Sussex Police – the county where Ball’s offences took place – after the publication of the Gibb Report.
She added: “The matters under consideration are complex, and advice is currently being sought from CPS to understand whether anything contained within the report suggests criminal offences have been committed. This does not equate to a criminal investigation being under way.”
David Greenwood, a solicitor who has acted for many of Ball’s victims, said: “Those who’ve been affected by Peter Ball want a clear investigation – especially as to whether it’s true that Peter Ball was protected by friends in high places.” Keith Porteous Wood, president of the National Secular Society, said: “We ask solely that the CPS treat everyone equally.”
Ball was jailed in October 2015 for the abuse of 18 young men, whom he taught between 1977 and 1992. He was released after 16 months. When Ball was first accused in 1992, Establishment figures including George Carey, Cabinet ministers and a High Court judge offered their support and wrote to the CPS. His trial heard support had also come from a member of the Royal Family.
A CPS spokesman said: “The CPS has been in contact with Operation Hydrant in order to provide advice.” The Church of England offered no comment, but said it would always co-operate with police investigations.