by Ian Paul, Psephizo
Regular readers will know that I have been concerned for many years at the gradual erosion of the clergy stipend, and both the corresponding decline in the clergy pension, together with the major changes made in 2008 and 2011, reducing the pension to 1/2 of the stipend from 2/3, and extending the qualifying period of service from the original 37 years to 41.5 years.
Having raised this repeatedly in Archbishops’ Council without fruit, I proposed a Private Members’ Motion to General Synod in February 2024, and it was passed nem con. You can read all the details in my article at the time.
I am delighted to say that, after some delay, the announcement was made yesterday that everything that my motion asked for has been agree by Archbishops’ Council, and will be proposed to General Synod in July, with the necessary legislation being brought to Synod in February 2026 (the earliest next opportunity) for implementation that year. The headlines from the press release are as follows: