Report says it is ‘unlikely’ Justin Welby knew nothing of concerns about Smyth, who abused schoolboys at Christian holiday camps

The Church of England covered up the actions of its worst and most brutal serial abuser, who subjected his victims to traumatic physical, sexual, psychological and spiritual attacks, an independent review has concluded.

John Smyth QC, a powerful and charismatic barrister, sadistically abused public schoolboys who attended evangelical Christian holiday camps in the late 1970s and early 80s. When the abuse was discovered, Smyth was allowed to move abroad in the full knowledge of church officials, where he continued to act with impunity.