The BBC discusses the forthcoming debate this afternoon Clergy face end to ‘job for life’
Financial Times Church review threat to clergy ‘jobs for life’
Reports of this afternoon:
Press Association Call to End Church ‘Jobs for Life’ Welcomed
Guardian Stephen Bates Synod votes to remove vicars’ freehold rights at churches
The Times Ruth Gledhill Anglican clergy to lose the right to a job for life
Yorkshire Post Michael Brown Here endeth your job for life, the nation’s vicars told
Financial Times Synod backs curbs on right to housing
Telegraph Jonathan Petre Synod backs move to end clergy ‘jobs for life’
Telegraph editorial against this decision House of prayer to let
The official report of business concerning the motion and vote on the Clergy Terms of Service report can be found in this RTF document and the key paragraphs are reproduced below the fold here.
8 The motion (as amended by Item 26)
‘That this Synod
(a) welcome in general terms the recommendations summarized on pages 1 to 7 of the Report (GS 1564) but with grave reservations about recommendations v, ix, xxiii f and xxiii g;
(b) commend the report to the dioceses and the wider Church and ask dioceses and other interested parties to submit comments by the end of July 2005 to the implementation group referred to in © below; and
© request the Archbishops’ Council to appoint an implementation group to follow up the recommendations in the report (taking account of the responses from dioceses and other interested parties both to this report and to the earlier report (GS 1527) on the first phase of the work) and to bring forward legislation based on those recommendations as early as possible in the next quinquennium.’
was carried after a division by Houses. The voting was as follows:
HOUSE AYES NOES
Bishops 37 0
Clergy 150 39
Laity 154 53