SALISBURY (UNITED KINGDOM)
National Secular Society [London, England]
October 5, 2026
By National Secular Society
Stephen Lake joins growing list of CofE bishops embroiled in scandal
The bishop of Salisbury Stephen Lake has been suspended by the Church of England as safeguarding complaints against him proceed.
Lake is the next bishop in line to take an ex officio seat in the House of Lords. The Church says he will not to be introduced into the Lords while he “remains subject to a complaint under a statutory process”.
Details of the safeguarding complaints have not been made public, except that they allegedly do not involve children.
Lake had already stepped back from his role in April while he was being investigated for alleged financial misconduct. He had also been a trustee of the Church Commissioners, which manage the CofE’s £11.1bn endowment.
Litany of scandals involving CofE bishops
In 2024, former archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby was forced to resign after a report found he “could and should” have done more to stop the abuse perpetrated by Jon Smyth.
Last year, the bishop of Liverpool quit after he was accused of sexual assault and harassment. There were also calls for the archbishop of York to resign after he described David Tudor, who has since been banned from the Church for sexually abusing children, as a “Rolls Royce” priest.
In September, the bishop of Lincoln resigned after he was arrested on suspicion of sexual assault. The archbishop of Canterbury was also forced to withdraw an interfaith award she presented to an Osama bin Laden apologist on the 25th anniversary of the 9/11.
CofE “cult” leader convicted of rape
Separately, the bishop of Sheffield has apologised after a former priest who formed a “cult” within the Church of England was convicted of rape last week.
Chris Brain was also found guilty of four counts of indecent assault against women who were part of the Nine O’Clock Service (NOS) in Sheffield in the 80s and 90s.
The NOS was so successful in attracting young people that Brain was “fast tracked to become an ordained priest within the Church of England”.
NSS: ‘No religion should enjoy reserved seats for its clerics in the legislature’
National Secular Society spokesperson Alejandro Sanchez said: “In a 21st century democracy, no religion should enjoy reserved seats for its clerics in the legislature.
“It is even more egregious when the Church of England’s hierarchy, which claims to offer moral leadership in the Lords, is forever engulfed in scandal. It is now time to abolish the archaic and anti-democratic bishops’ bench.”