The Catholic Relief Act 1829 still has contemporaneous relevance to the surprise of everyone
Earlier this year, there was some debate over whether or not Boris Johnson had run afoul of section 18 of the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829. There were reports that he’d converted to Roman Catholicism, and Roman Catholics are barred from advising the Sovereign on ecclesiastical appointments.[1] Since then, the situation has been murky. Ben Lewis filed a Freedom of Information request in a bid to shed light on the situation, but Downing Street’s answer is something of a mess and only raises more questions.
No. 10 claimed that “[u]nder reforms introduced in 2007 by the then Prime Minister, the Rt Hon Gordon Brown, the Prime Minister does not choose or advise on Church appointments. His or her role is confined to conveying the name of the nominated candidate to The Queen.”
It’s true that, for diocesan bishops, the Crown Nominations Commission gives the Prime Minister a single name which…
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Utopia, you are standing in it! 
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