Archbishop of York apologises to General Synod after revolt

The archbishop of York faced a revolt by a significant minority of members at the Church of England's ruling body when an attempt was made to block his opening address.

- Harriet Sherwood

A third of members of the General Synod declined to give Stephen Cottrell their backing, by either voting in favour of the move to prevent his speech or abstaining.

The move was intended to "send a message to the nation" that his position was no longer tenable, said Sam Margrave, who moved the motion.

It came after a senior bishop again called for Cottrell to quit, saying it was inappropriate for him to be "leading change that the church needs at this time".

Helen-Ann Hartley, the bishop of Newcastle, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I think he is the wrong person. I think to be in that position of leadership, you have to talk the talk and walk the walk, and you can't have one without the other. And I think for him to have allowed [a priest accused of abuse] to remain in post, I do find abhorrent."