Church sex cover up claim denied

The leader of Roman Catholics in England and Wales has denied a child sex abuse survivor’s claim he covered up for the actions of a priest at the centre of several allegations.

Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, was asked whether he had suppressed a 1968 note relating to an alleged incident involving Father John Tolkien, son of novelist JRR Tolkien.

The note came to light in legal advice to the cardinal, while considering a civil claim by an alleged victim of Father Tolkien’s.