Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, said the “optics are difficult to understand… for the man in the street” but said the Holy See was following diplomatic procedures.

Brian Altman QC, counsel to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA), said the Holy See had not provided information about the delays in the laicisation – or defrocking – of some paedophile priests.

He cited the example of James Robinson, a West Midlands-based priest who was convicted in 2010 of 21 child sex offences – the laicisation documents were sent to Rome in 2010 and again in 2015 but it was only finalised in February last year.

Mr Altman said the inquiry has been told that the Holy See considers “the domestic laws and internal proceedings of a foreign, sovereign entity are not the proper object for a British inquiry”.

He asked the cardinal whether he agreed the apparent delays were a “matter of legitimate concern”, and the witness said he did, adding he thought mistakes were made in the original defrocking application.

Cardinal Nichols said: “Beyond that, I cannot go very far, I am not a diplomat and I do not understand the niceties of international law in these things.

“I was given the impression a very focused request could receive a reply but it had to be not a generalised request but a particularly focused request.”

Mr Altman asked whether that would appear…

Most Rev John Davies released a statement on Thursday ahead of the General Election on 12^th December.

He said: “Brexit, which has dominated so much of the country’s public discourse and political agenda for so long, does need to be sorted before we all despair.

“But it has all but airbrushed from the scene and taken off the agenda other critical issues which we continue to face, and with which many individuals and groups within society and the wider world, continue to struggle. These issues are much too serious for that to be so.”

Archbishop John highlighted climate change, the refugee crisis, modern slavery, trafficking and spending cuts on public services as serious issues that deserve the attention of politicians.  

“In the campaign that has already begun – badly skewed, poorly focused and too noisily some would say – we deserve to, and need to, hear about these issues again,” he said.

“We must demand that they are debated honestly and carefully for the sake of our integrity as a country and as a national family. And we must be allowed to hear about them through honest, reasoned and respectful debate, and not by means of a strident, emotive and, frankly, shameful, highly personal style of debate, a style that has both debased and disfigured the scene for too long.”

The archbishop encouraged people to vote, to take part in debates and also to…

The claims against him include sexting, harassment, affairs with married women and women in committed relationships and offering free tickets to his shows in exchange for sexual favours.

The allegations were revealed in an article by . on Wednesday which shared the stories of five women who claim Crist initiated inappropriate sexual behaviour with them.

It’s been reported that over the last seven years Crist has used his popular and influential Christian platform to “to harass, manipulate and exploit young women”.

In an email sent to . this week and published in the story, Crist admitted to ”destructive and sinful” behaviour but said he is “not guilty of everything” he’s been accused of.

“While I am not guilty of everything I’ve been accused of, I confess to being guilty of this—I have treated relationships with women far too casually, in some cases even recklessly,” he wrote.

“I’ve sinned against God, against women and the people who I love the most. I have violated my own Christian beliefs, convictions and values, and have hurt many people in the process. I am sorry for the hurt and pain I have caused these women and will continue to seek their forgiveness. I have also hurt the name of Jesus and have sought His forgiveness.”

In the email, Crist added that he has privately sought and received professional treatment…

The claims against him include sexting, harassment, affairs with married women and women in committed relationships and offering free tickets to his shows in exchange for sexual favours.

The allegations were revealed in an article by . on Wednesday which shared the stories of five women who claim Crist initiated inappropriate sexual behaviour with them.

It’s been reported that over the last seven years Crist has used his popular and influential Christian platform to “to harass, manipulate and exploit young women”.

In an email sent to . this week and published in the story, Crist admitted to ”destructive and sinful” behaviour but said he is “not guilty of everything” he’s been accused of.

“While I am not guilty of everything I’ve been accused of, I confess to being guilty of this—I have treated relationships with women far too casually, in some cases even recklessly,” he wrote.

“I’ve sinned against God, against women and the people who I love the most. I have violated my own Christian beliefs, convictions and values, and have hurt many people in the process. I am sorry for the hurt and pain I have caused these women and will continue to seek their forgiveness. I have also hurt the name of Jesus and have sought His forgiveness.”

In the email, Crist added that he has privately sought and received professional treatment…

Home for Good supports Christians through the fostering and adoption process and also equips churches to encourage fostering and adoption within congregations.

The Catholic Church in England and Wales is working in partnership with the charity to be part of the solution to thousands of children growing up in the care system.

According to the charity, almost 3,000 children are waiting for adoption and a quarter of those have been waiting for more than 18 months.

The Fostering Network also estimates that more than 8,600 foster carers must be found this year alone.

The campaign will support communities in raising awareness of the needs of children and exploring together how Catholic parishes can respond by inspiring more people to become foster carers or adoptive parents, or supporting those that do.

Organisers of the Leeds conference said: “Adoption and fostering is part of our Catholic DNA, our Christian story and experience.”

The new partnership comes shortly after National Adoption Week 2019, when Home for Good launched a drive to find more adopters and fosterers within the black and minority ethnic community.

It says that there is a “significant” shortage of BAME adopters even though black children continue to be over represented in the care system.

Although black children account for 3 per cent of the total population in England, 7 per cent of the children in…