UK PM plans to end ‘archaic’ ban on Catholics advising on church roles
UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced plans to repeal the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 and Jews Relief Act 1858 bans that prevent Catholics and Jews from advising the monarch on Church of England and Church of Scotland appointments. He transferred his advisory role to the Lord Chancellor, citing the antiquated legislation as an unacceptable barrier to faith diversity in government duties. Burnham pledged to introduce a bill to correct the discriminatory provisions, following pressure from the National Secular Society. The restrictions apply only to Catholics and Jews, not to other faiths such as Hinduism or atheism, reflecting a historical legacy of the English Reformation. The move highlights the constitutional role of the monarch in episcopal appointments and the ongoing debate over church‑state separation in the UK.
20 days ago
Prime Minister Andy Burnham plans to introduce legislation ending restrictions that prevent Catholics and Jews from advising the British monarch on appointments to the Church of England and Church of Scotland. He described the restrictions as an “antiquated and archaic anomaly” and temporarily transferred his advisory responsibility to the Lord Chancellor. 1
Burnham announced that he had transferred his constitutional responsibility for advising King Charles III on ecclesiastical appointments to Lord Chancellor Alex Norris. He said this was necessary because existing law bars Catholics from advising the monarch on appointments to offices in the Church of England and Church of Scotland. 1
The government intends to introduce a bill “at the earliest possible opportunity” to remove what Burnham called an unacceptable legislative barrier preventing people of any faith from carrying out all the functions of the prime minister’s office. 1
The corresponding restriction on Jewish advisers derives from the Jews Relief Act 1858. The Catholic restriction was established by the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829, which eased wider limits on Catholic participation in public life but retained the prohibition on advising about established-church appointments. 1
Burnham is identified as the first lifelong Catholic to become British prime minister. The restrictions did not apply to Hindu Prime Minister Rishi Sunak or atheist Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who served before Burnham. 1
The National Secular Society welcomed the development after it had written to Cabinet Office minister Louise Haigh in August, calling for the provisions to be ended as discriminatory. 1
The restrictions are rooted in Britain’s constitutional and religious history. Following Henry VIII’s break with Rome, legislation established the monarch’s authority over Church of England appointments, while the Church of England became the established church in England and the Reformed faith was established in Scotland in 1560. 1
The Act of Settlement 1701 separately bars the monarch from being Catholic or marrying a Catholic, requiring the sovereign to remain in communion with the Church of England. 1
The House of Commons Library has said that the prohibition concerning Church of Scotland appointments may now have limited practical relevance because nominations are made independently of the monarch. 1
The prime minister’s role in Church of England appointments was reduced in 2007 under Gordon Brown. Previously, the Crown Nominations Commission normally sent two candidates to the prime minister, who selected one and advised the monarch to appoint that person. 1
Since 2007, the commission normally sends only one name to the prime minister, while keeping a second candidate in reserve if the first is rejected. 1
Benjamin Disraeli, Britain’s first and only Jewish prime minister, was baptized into the Church of England at age 12 and was therefore able to advise the monarch on ecclesiastical appointments. 1
The religious status of Boris Johnson also raised questions about the restrictions. He was baptized Catholic, later confirmed in the Church of England, and married in a Catholic ceremony in 2021; that wedding prompted debate over whether he should have transferred his advisory responsibility to the Lord Chancellor, as Burnham has now done. 1*
Reform Church‑state discrimination under Catholic Relief Act
The Catholic Relief Act of 1829 significantly reformed church–state discrimination in the United Kingdom, but it did not establish complete religious equality.
It admitted Catholics to Parliament and municipal corporations, ending many of the disabilities imposed by the penal laws. Yet discrimination remained: Catholics were still barred from certain senior offices, including the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland and Lord Chancellor, while priests and bishops faced restrictions on public vestments and episcopal titles. Religious orders also suffered limitations on receiving charitable bequests.
The Act therefore represented emancipation rather than full equality. It was obtained amid intense political pressure, especially through Daniel O’Connell’s leadership, and in circumstances where continued refusal risked civil conflict. Its concessions were also accompanied by the disfranchisement of forty-shilling freeholders, which particularly harmed poorer Irish Catholics.
Further reforms were needed. Catholic disabilities were gradually removed through later legislation: the Protestant establishment in Ireland was disestablished in 1869, remaining anti-Catholic oaths were repealed between 1867 and 1910, and Catholics increasingly entered Parliament, the judiciary, and government.
Thus, the Catholic Relief Act corrected the most conspicuous forms of state discrimination against Catholics, but its own restrictions show that reform was incomplete. Full church–state equality emerged only through subsequent dismantling of religious tests, office exclusions, and institutional Protestant ascendancy.